


Dangan Ronpa, Another IF: Goodbye Despair

by MHJoker4Ever



Series: Another IF [2]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:36:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 206,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26819671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MHJoker4Ever/pseuds/MHJoker4Ever
Summary: Different choices lead to different outcomes. The world braches with countless timelines, endless possibilities.... But sometimes, different outcomes breed new choices and results.Sayaka Maizono chose not to carry out her murder plan, and that led to new murders and survivors of the televised Killing Game of Hope's Peak High. Consequentially, that would come to affect the participants of the Jabberwock Island Killing Game. And it would also profoundly affect the people and events outside that game - both those who only wanted to help old friends recover from Despair... and others, who have less altruistic intentions...Mukuro Ikusaba is another such individual with profound significance on events. She will take the role that Sayaka had... And she will decide whether or not to step on that butterfly. Just like her upperclassmen, she is another lost soul that must find her own path. Izuru Kamukura dragged her along, hoping to finally answer which is the true wild card - Hope or Despair. This... will be her answer.This... will be THEIR answer. Sometimes if you just do it... Things will turn out okay.Sequel to Another IF. Can still be enjoyed on its own, for the most part.
Relationships: Celestia Ludenberg & Naegi Makoto, Celestia Ludenberg/Naegi Makoto, Hinata Hajime & Nanami Chiaki, Hinata Hajime/Nanami Chiaki, Ikusaba Mukuro & Naegi Makoto, Ikusaba Mukuro/Naegi Makoto, Kuzuryu Fuyuhiko & Pekoyama Peko, Kuzuryu Fuyuhiko/Pekoyama Peko, Maizono Sayaka & Naegi Makoto, Maizono Sayaka/Naegi Makoto, Munakata Kyosuke & Yukizome Chisa, Munakata Kyosuke/Yukizome Chisa, Sonia Nevermind & Tanaka Gundham, Sonia Nevermind/Tanaka Gundham
Series: Another IF [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1942276
Comments: 1018
Kudos: 172





	1. Prologue, Part 1

“Hey… Can you hear me?” As the brunet sluggishly opened his eyes, he saw a white-haired teen in a greenish gray hoodie leaning over him. The boy continued speaking even as the brunet remained silent. “Are you okay? You seem pretty out of it… To be honest, I’m also… No, I’m pretty sure everyone else feels the same, too. Since we suddenly… got put in this weird situation. Hey, are you listening?”

The brunet frowned as he thought over everything. The whole situation was just so surreal…

_‘I don’t understand. Why am I… here…? What happened? I should try to remember that first…’_ The brunet began to think, disentangling the twisted knots that formed in his mind. He gathered the fragments of scattered memories to piece together what actually happened. _‘That’s right… I… I…’_

~*~

That day… wasn’t just a typical day for him. It was a day that felt… truly significant. And when the long-awaited day finally came, he felt proud in a way that he couldn’t really put into words. He felt like… he had just become a part of something greater than himself. Actually, that’s exactly what it was like… He was truly in a dream, as he stood outside the impressive, towering building.

**Hope’s Peak Academy** … That place was so much more than a school to him. Kids who love to play baseball will long to join the major leagues… Kids who love to play soccer will long to join the rep team… And ever since he was a kid, he has felt the same way about Hope’s Peak Academy…

Hope’s Peak Academy is a government-funded school for the privileged elite of society. It recruits top students from every imaginable field to inspire **Hope** , and in doing so, shape the future. Whenever Hope’s Peak is mentioned, it’s only a matter of time before someone says… “ **If you come here and manage to graduate** , **you** ’ **ll be set for life**.” And that wasn’t a joke or exaggeration at all. Many of the current leaders of various industries are actually alumni of this school… Well, that’s basically what Hope’s Peak Academy is all about. As they say, it’s truly the **Academy of Hope**.

There are two criteria you must meet in order to attend this school… **One** , **you must be a current high school student**. **Two** , **you must be the very best at what you do**. Unlike other schools, there aren’t any entrance exams at this academy. The only way to get in is if the school scouts you itself… That is how Hope’s Peak Academy operates. Now, because of the talents of those who are chosen…The students of Hope’s Peak are called **Ultimates**. But even though he was finally going to Hope’s Peak Academy, the school he desired more than anything else… The truth is, his circumstances are a little different from that of his peers.

“I’m not so special that I **have** to introduce myself, and formalities are always a little embarrassing… Well, this **is** what’s expected… I guess that’s how I should think about it. My name is **Hajime Hinata**. There’s only one reason I came to Hope’s Peak Academy… because I **admired Hope** ’ **s Peak Academy**. To me, attending Hope’s Peak Academy is like being a celebrity or a superhero. In fact, instead of calling it admiration, it’s more like… it’s always been a **dream** of mine. That’s why, to feel like a member of society, to become someone I can be proud of, I always wanted to… For that reason alone, I always wanted to… For that reason alone I always always always always always… ways… until now, I never wanted to admit how painfully ordinary I really am… That’s why… hope… I might have admired talent… individuality… but I have finally… forever…tried my best… finally came true…”

… Hajime blacked out.

~*~

_‘Huh? What is this?’_ Hajime wondered to himself, finding he was in a dark space where he could only see a door in front of him. _‘… It’s a door. There’s a door. … Still, I need to hurry. Because I need to go inside this classroom… Need? What “need”? No… I should hurry.’_

Unsteadily, Hajime made his way over to the door. He slid it open slowly, and a white light blinded him momentarily before his eyes adjusted. He was in a typical classroom… with several others there, already. A blonde girl in a dark, formal dress with white shoulders and a red bow was nearest to him on his left; a wild-looking girl with holes in her socks was against the blackboard in the rear of the room; a fat blond man in a white suit and glasses was near the first girl; a strawberry blonde girl in a backpack and hoodie was seated behind the fat man; a redheaded girl in a traditional skirt and blouse was standing by the strawberry blonde girl, and a purple-haired girl was nervously standing in front of them; there was a pair of boys near the lockers in the back – one had a dark coat and purple scarf, the other was in an obnoxious yellow jumper suit and had pink hair and pointed teeth; a blond teen in a striped black suit stood by the leftmost window, and a brunette, tanned girl was standing closest to the middle window; a white-haired teen leaned against the wall between the middle and right windows; a blonde in an orange kimono sat at a desk in the front with a portly-looking guy in an apron and handkerchief combing his hair eagerly near her; a silver-haired girl in glasses, arms crossed, stood in front of the blonde girl’s desk; and finally, nearest to Hajime’s right was an intimidating-looking man with bulging muscles, wearing a leather jacket and chain, and crossing his arms like the silver-haired girl.

All of them were pretty unique…

“Huh…?” Hajime muttered, confused at suddenly being in this classroom, and surrounded by so many new strange characters.

“Who goes there?” The silver-haired girl spoke up cautiously.

“Eh?” Hajime still couldn’t find words as he looked around at them all.

“Um… are you feeling all right? You look quite pale…” The blonde to his left sounded concerned for him.

“Ah, um…” Hajime continued to stutter.

The redhead spoke up next.

“Hey, could you be…? You’re also a freshman at this school, right?”

Hajime nodded numbly.

“Ah, then you’re all…”

The pink-haired boy in the back chipped in.

“See for yourself. We’re all **freshmen** , too…”

_‘These guys… Everyone? The freshmen who were accepted into Hope’s Peak Academy… The **Ultimates**?’ _Hajime couldn’t help thinking to himself in amazement.

“I assume… freshmen like us have been gathered in this classroom.” The strawberry girl sitting at a desk spoke up casually.

_‘Freshmen?’_ Hajime repeated in his mind.

“Hey, why don’t you come inside for now?” The fat with glasses told him.

“Eh? Ah, yes, of course!” Hajime awkwardly complied, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. He thought to himself, _‘Wait, why am I being so polite? I know they’re called the **Ultimates** , but they’re still high school students like me… That’s right… first impressions are crucial in moments like this! I need to act more confident!’_

To hide his nervousness, and trying to act cool, Hajime stepped into the classroom fully, closed the door behind him, and sat in an open seat in the back of the classroom.

_‘Anyway… what just happened earlier? I wanted to be here, and then a classroom door appeared right in front of me… As if I was drawn to it… But how did I walk into this classroom? I don’t remember… Something’s… weird…’_ Hajime frowned and decided to ask the others about the strangeness of the situation. “Um… excuse me?”

The fat kid spoke up again.

“What is it?”

“Why are we all gathered in this classroom? No one said anything about coming here, so… is there, like, an entrance ceremony or homeroom happening now?” Hajime scratched his head in confusion.

The fat kid snorted.

“Actually… we were just about to discuss that matter.”

“Discuss?” Hajime echoed.

“Well… Since you are the last student to arrive, let’s start the discussion.” The fat kid inclined his head arrogantly, arms crossed.

The wild-looking dark-haired girl peered at them curiously.

“Eh, this is everyone? How do you know?”

The fat kid chuckled.

“There are only seventeen desks in this classroom, and this guy is the seventeenth student… It’s obvious if you bother to think about it…!”

Hajime froze as something about that statement bothered him. Mentally, he counted off the students he’d seen when he first stepped into the room… there were fifteen he’d seen. But the fat kid was right – there were seventeen desks. He could see that now. Where was the sixteenth kid he missed…?

… Oh.

**Oh**.

That was a little embarrassing. He hadn’t bothered to look over the hulking, bulging muscles guy’s shoulder when he came in. There was a dark-haired girl in a blouse and skirt standing aloofly by the rightmost window. Her expression was perfectly blank, and she wasn’t looking at any particular person or thing – yet somehow, Hajime got the sense that she was listening attentively to everything going on… It wasn’t like she was zoning out, Hajime could tell that much from just a glance.

“And just what are we gonna talk about?” The boy in an apron and little hat piped up, oblivious to Hajime’s thoughts. “The reason we’re all gathered in this classroom?”

“First, I need to confirm something…” The fat kid remarked. “Out of everyone here… Is there anyone who actually remembers how they came to this classroom?”

Everyone looked around at one another, surprise appearing on their faces when no one raised their hands. Even the girl that Hajime had glossed over, she appeared bemused.

“So before you realized it, you were in this classroom… Then **everyone here** is in the same predicament…” The fat kid continued. He raised an index finger to his temple in thought. “No matter how you look at it, it’s unnatural. Even you stupid-looking ones would agree, right?”

The redhead adopted a similar, thoughtful pose.

“I-It sure is strange. Nobody actually remembers how they came here…” She placed her hands on her hips in exasperation. “… Hey! What do you mean, ‘stupid-looking’?!”

The fat kid ignored the cry of outrage.

“The moment you set foot on campus, you felt a strange dizziness, and now you’re here and don’t know why… That is what I experienced before I arrived here. Am I correct in assuming that’s true for all of you?”

Hajime nodded numbly in agreement.

“Th-That happened to me too, but…”

“Eh?! The dizziness wasn’t just me?” The kid with the apron exclaimed in shock. “Everyone felt the same dizziness… that’s weird!”

The purple-haired girl poked her index fingers together nervously.

“E-Even if it’s just a coincidence… It feels too good to be true…”

“So you’re saying it’s not just coincidence, then.” The fat kid smirked. “Meaning… we can only speculate **who** ’ **s responsible** for this strange phenomenon.”

Hajime frowned and thought to himself again.

_‘The one responsible… What is this? It feels like… this is going to get even stranger…’_

The guy with muscles picked at his ear with his pinky.

“Hah! I don’t know what you’re so worried about, but that doesn’t sound like a huge deal…”

“… What do you mean?” The pink-haired kid with a beanie scratched his cheek awkwardly.

“I mean it’s a minor problem.” The guy with muscles crossed his arms and nodded sagely. “Instead of trying to figure out why we’re here, we should try to figure out why we can’t leave…”

The brown-haired, tan girl scrunched her face in confusion at that.

“Huh? Waddaya mean we can’t leave?”

“E-Eh…? S-Seriously?!” The guy with the apron scurried over to the door and tried, and failed, to get the door to open again. “I-It won’t open! I can’t open it!”

“Huh? Why?” The redhead’s eyes widened in surprise.

The guy with muscles clenched a fist and gritted his teeth in frustration.

“A little while after I got here, I tried to leave to go take a shit… But that door wouldn’t budge at all!”

“Hey, hey… what’s going on…” The pink-haired guy massaged his head in frustration.

“Even with all my might, I couldn’t open it! It’d be absolutely impossible for all of you…” The guy with muscles picked his nose casually.

The blonde girl in a kimono made a cutesy frowny face.

“Eh? What do you mean you couldn’t open it? Why? That’s not possible!”

Hajime nodded desperately.

“Sh-She’s right…! Because… when I went through that door, it opened normally… It wasn’t locked at all…!”

“Though I don’t understand what forces are at work here… There’s no denying that we’ve been locked inside this classroom…” The silver-haired girl with glasses mused.

“Wh-What do you… mean…?” Hajime suddenly became aware of how heavy his body felt. An unspeakable dread settled on his shoulders…

“M-Maybe we’re… getting mixed up… in something dangerous?” The pink-haired kid rubbed the back of his head nervously.

The white-haired guy in a hoodie rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Or perhaps… doesn’t it make more sense this is the **entrance exam**?”

“The entrance exam? You mean, Hope’s Peak Academy’s?” Hajime parroted back, befuddled. The blonde girl in a formal dress tilted her head, voicing Hajime’s thoughts.

“But… according to Hope’s Peak Academy, no such entrance exam exists.”

The white-haired boy raised a finger astutely.

“They may say that publicly, but it’s possible that this is actually a **special entrance exam**.”

Before anyone could comment on the boy’s speculation, the door slid open one more time. The next person they all saw was an orange-haired woman, who seemed to be dressed like a maid. And like so many of them before her, she waltzed into the classroom, happy as a clam, sliding the door shut behind her before any of them could even shout for her to stop.

“Good morning, everyone~!” The woman tilted her head curiously as she counted off the students and desks. “… Is this all of you, then? Hmm. I think Headmaster Kirigiri forgot there were a few more of you… Orrr maybe that was Kizakura-san’s fault. Well, regardless, I’m so stoked to get started~!”

The blond boy in a striped suit eloquently voiced all their thoughts as they stared at the woman, happily swaying to and fro.

“Who the hell are you?”

Instead of being offended at the blunt question, the woman’s eyes sparkled as she beamed merrily.

“The name’s Chisa Yukizome! I’m your official homeroom teacher this year, starting today!” The woman stopped herself before rubbing the back of her head bashfully. “Or, well, I’m the **assistant** homeroom teacher… Kizakura-san is supposed to be in charge, but he’s nursing a bit of a bad hangover… Bet he’s barfing as we speak~…”

… Then again, you wanna talk about blunt, this sorta ditzy-looking teacher didn’t hold back, either. Hajime smiled nervously as he contemplated the new arrival. At least she seemed like she would be a good fit for this bunch of kids… Maybe a bit much for himself personally, but, she’d need that kind of vitality for… the rest of them…

At least they were marginally relaxed now, with a clear authority figure present and established. Now the situation seemed a little more “normal” and less ominous… The memory stuff was still worrying, but Hajime was sure that’d all be explained in time. After all, as eccentric and unique as Hope’s Peak was, it was still a **school** , right? They all took their seats, the desks arranged in rows of four with the exception of the last which seated five – some of them reluctantly – and the fat kid spoke up again.

“And so? What is the itinerary for today?” He looked a little put out for some reason Hajime couldn’t guess at, but the question was reasonable.

Yukizome hummed in thought.

“Well… why not start with introductions?! I’m actually a bit fuzzy on who Headmaster Kirigiri did and didn’t mention!” The woman clapped her hands together gleefully. “I already gave you my name – oh, but I guess I’ll throw in that I’m an alumni of Hope’s Peak! I was the Ultimate Housekeeper. Now it’s your turn~!”

The bubbly teacher gestured for the rightmost student from her perspective in the first row to start. It was the blonde in the orange kimono.

“I’m Hiyoko Saionji! I’m the Ultimate Traditional Dancer!” Saionji smirked a bit unpleasantly at all of them. “I bet I’m way more interesting than most of you cretins~…”

… Well, that didn’t sound ominous at all. Hajime made a mental note to watch out for that one, at least until he got to know her better…

The boy with the apron behind her combed his hair suavely.

“Hmhmhm… Oh, mademoiselle, we’re just getting **started**! Teruteru Hanamura, Ultimate Chef at your service!” His grin was… a little lecherous…

Yukizome beamed, wagging her finger at the portly chef.

“Now, now, Hanamura, I remember you, at least – you’re the Ultimate **Cook**.” While it wasn’t that big of a deal, Yukizome preferred setting the record straight.

Teruteru straightened up, his face carefully blank.

“P-Please call me Chef…” Hope’s Peak was cruel, giving him such a tasteless title! Cruel… cruel… too cruel~…

The wild-looking girl behind him burst into giggles as she swayed in her seat without a care in the world.

“I-Bu-Ki Mi-O-Da! Put it together and waddaya get?! Ibuki Mioda~!” The girl placed on her hips proudly, practically making a troll face with that grin… “Ibuki is the Ultimate Musician! Ibuki’s looking forward to jamming with you guys~!”

Hajime straightened up as he realized it was his turn. He felt… nervous. And not for the reasons you would think.

“Ah, um… I-I’m Hajime Hinata…” He timidly waved from his seat in the back. He gulped as his introduction felt… incomplete. It was blatantly obvious.

Yukizome tilted her head curiously at him.

“And what is it you do, Hinata-kun?” That earnest curiosity shining in her eyes could not be mistaken for anything else. Hajime smiled weakly in response. He didn’t want to let her down… However…

“I-I… I actually don’t remember.” The boy confessed, feeling all eyes on him. “I-I’m sorry! I’ll try my best to remember it as soon as I can…!”

Yukizome merely smiled and compassionately nodded. Like the rest of them, the bubbly teacher assumed it was just first-day jitters. Everyone had those, right?

Up next was the dark-haired girl Hajime had missed on his first sweep of the room. She had chosen to sit next to Hajime in the back.

“I’m Mukuro Ikusaba. Ultimate Soldier.” The girl stoically reported, her eyes on the front of the room.

_‘S-Soldier…?’_ Hajime stared at the girl, a bit gobsmacked and quite frankly a little nervous sitting to such a… potentially dangerous individual. Hope’s Peak let in students of all kinds, didn’t it? He couldn’t even begin to imagine the sorts of things Ikusaba must have done to impress Hope’s Peak’s recruiters…

As if to prove Hajime’s thoughts on Hope’s Peak’s diversity correct, the fat kid in front of Mukuro went next, rather than the white-haired boy sitting to Mukuro’s right.

“My name’s Byakuya Togami. I was chosen as the Ultimate Scion, remember that!”

Everyone in the room had heard of the Togami Conglomerate… Byakuya might seem pretentious and arrogant, but he had a right to be prideful. Hajime knew that with Hope’s Peak’s reputation, being classmates with such a bigshot was all but inevitable… But he still marveled at this revelation all the same.

The redhead in front of Byakuya rolled her eyes, but smiled soon enough since it was her turn.

“I’m Mahiru Koizumi, the Ultimate Photographer! Nice to meet you all!” Mahiru’s introduction felt about as plain as Hajime felt he was… That felt nice, in its own way. Maybe he wouldn’t be so out-of-place after all…

The pink-haired kid sitting in front of her, in the front row, grinned as he offered a thumb’s-up.

“Name’s Kazuichi Souda! I’m the Ultimate Mechanic, y’know!” He seemed nice… though the way he dressed was definitely off-putting. Such bright, garish colors…

The regal blonde girl sitting to Souda’s left laced her fingers together and elegantly beamed at Yukizome.

“I am Sonia Nevermind, and I was chosen as the Ultimate Princess! I hail from the European country of Novoselic, and I look forward to studying with you all!”

_‘Princess can be considered a talent…?’_ Hajime wondered to himself, before shaking his head. Like Byakuya, that just meant Sonia had the qualities of a leader – one that would one day lead an entire country. That was definitely Ultimate material right there… he had no doubts Sonia had earned her title.

The strawberry blonde behind Sonia smiled kindly, hand over her chest.

“I’m Chiaki Nanami, the Ultimate Gamer! I look forward to getting to know you all, too!”

Hajime knew these were really just introductions, and his perspective would inevitably change once he got to know these people better, but the longer this went on, the more confident he felt he could handle being in a class with these people…

The brown-haired girl behind Nanami was picking at her ear like she was bored. When she felt all eyes on her, she grinned toothily before slamming her hands down on her desk with a raw energy Hajime hadn’t seen before.

“Name’s Akane Owari~! I’m the Ultimate Gymnast, so if you wanna fight, let’s go!!!”

“Hold on!” The guy with bulging muscles behind her called out, holding up a hand calmly. “We’re not even through introductions yet! Now… how ‘bout you next, kid?”

The white-haired boy to his left chuckled weakly as the guy with muscles clapped him on the back strongly.

“Ahaha… Well… I was going to wait until all of you amazing people had gone, but if you insist! I’m Nagito Komaeda… And while it’s not much of a talent, I guess I can admit I was chosen as the Ultimate Lucky Student.”

The guy with muscles nodded sternly.

“That’s the spirit! Hope’s Peak chose you, **don’t forget that**!!!” Lightning seemed to crackle around his eyes as he roared passionately. “Name’s **Nekomaru Nidaiiiii**! I’m the Ultimate Team Manager, so don’t forget my name, even if you go to Hell~!”

Hajime briefly considered the three names and talents he’d just heard about… Akane and Nekomaru were definitely some of the livelier ones of the class. Nagito was self-depreciative, though… He was a little curious, if Hajime was honest with himself. Similar to Ultimate Princess, he hadn’t known ‘luck’ could constitute a talent… But he supposed he’d be witnessing that ‘luck’ firsthand soon enough…

The silver-haired girl to Nekomaru’s right closed her eyes calmly, knowing it was her turn.

“I am Peko Pekoyama… My title is the Ultimate Swordswoman.”

_‘A Soldier **and** a Swordswoman?’_ Hajime felt his body shiver a little at this revelation. What would it look like if those two fought…?

… And why did Ikusaba have to sit next to him again? Not that he minded getting to know her… He just didn’t like imagining such a titanic clash while sitting next to one of the potential participants in question…

The blond boy in front of Peko smirked as he went next.

“Name’s Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu! Just so you know, I don’t intend on acting friendly and shit with you guys… I’m the Ultimate Yakuza, assholes!”

“Language~…” Yukizome sang from the front of the room, still beaming cheerfully. Fuyuhiko arched an eyebrow suspiciously.

“Hah? What you gonna do about it, bitch?”

Yukizome’s beaming smile did not change, but the slight drop in the temperature in the room, plus the ominous swaying of her hips did set a few of them on edge. The purple-haired girl in front of Fuyuhiko nervously spoke up to try to defuse the tension.

“I-I-I’m Mikan Tsumiki! M-My title’s the U-Ultimate Nurse…” Mikan flinched as a few looked over at her. “D-Don’t hate meeeee…!”

Hajime quirked an eyebrow at the nurse curiously. She was the one who had put herself out there… Then again, he shouldn’t judge when he barely knew the seemingly erratic, nervous wreck of a girl.

Lastly, the boy with a purple scarf in front of her introduced himself.

“My name is **Gundham Tanaka**! And I am the Supreme Ruler of this fallen world~…! Carve that name into your souls so that you may remember it, but do not utter it carelessly! If you must, I will accept tributes for my Four Dark Devas of Destruction~!”

As the boy cackled eccentrically, Yukizome sweatdropped as everyone gazed at him like he’d grown a second head.

“Tanaka-kun is the Ultimate Breeder, everyone! Let’s all give him a big welcome!” Yukizome clapped her hands together contentedly. “Well~! That does it for introductions…”

The burning question of ‘now what’ lingered on more than a few of their tongues. Hajime knew from previous experiences in other schools, orientation and homeroom never had much substance to them. He supposed classroom and school rules would be next on the agenda, at least if he had to hazard a guess.

Then again, this being Hope’s Peak, anything was fair game. And he was right to assume that… Only, it’s hard to say that anyone in the room could have predicted exactly what happened next.

“So what now?” Souda ended up casually voicing the question that was on all their minds.

“Well…” Yukizome opened her mouth, but a new voice cut her off.

“Now the heart-throbbing school trip can begin~!”

Everyone stared at the housekeeper strangely.

“Oi, teach, what’s with the cutesy voice…?” Fuyuhiko asked, eyebrows raised. Yukizome was chirpy, and peppy, but that voice was so sweet-sounding it was saccharine… The yakuza didn’t care for it, not one bit.

“I-It wasn’t me…” Yukizome confessed, looking around the room with some concern. The voice had come from the front of the room where she was, but there was nobody else present that she or any of them could see.

Akane cocked her head suspiciously.

“Huh? Then whose voice was that?”

“Um, that was actually me!” The voice spoke up again.

“Who’s there?! Where are you?!” Nekomaru yelled out loudly.

Chiaki held a hand over her eyes as she peered forward.

“It sounded like it came from behind the teacher’s desk!”

_‘Behind the teacher’s desk…?’_ Hajime and Chisa both wondered at the same time, the latter looking down at her feet and finding nothing.

“All right! I see everyone has arrived! Let’s begin!” The voice called out. In the next moment, there was a brightly, sparkly light that flashed in front of Yukizome and spun around on the desk before a stuffed pink and white rabbit came into view, carrying around a magic wand. The rabbit danced around on the desk cheerfully.

Hajime was the first to… recover from the shock of this sudden and inexplicable occurrence.

“What… is that…?” Which is to say, he didn’t recover at all. He was still as lost as everyone else.

“Um… it looks like a stuffed animal…” Mahiru mused.

“Um, that’s right!” The rabbit confirmed. “I am a squeezably soft stuffed animal. Magical Miracle Girl * Usami! A.K.A. Usami! I may not look like it, but I am your squeezably soft assistant homeroom teacher~! Nice to meet you all!”

Yukizome frowned lightly at this claim. She moved to the side of the podium to get a better look at the rabbit, as she just had a view of the stuffed animal’s angel wings on her back.

“Um… Usami, was it…?” At the stuffed animal’s affirmation, Yukizome’s brow furrowed further. “Usami… Headmaster Kirigiri said **I** was the assistant homeroom teacher… Kizakura-san was the one still in charge…?”

Usami giggled innocently.

“Oh, Yukizome-chan, you’re so silly~! Headmaster Kirigiri has given you full authority to be this class’s homeroom teacher – it was a last-minute decision, but it’s the truth! Kizakura-san fully supports it, so I don’t see why you shouldn’t, as well!”

Yukizome pored over her memories of her interactions with the two older men. Was it really possible to have had a drastic change of mind like that in the few minutes she’d been with the students…? The housekeeper didn’t seem to think it was. She was new to this, even if she was a graduate. This seemed far too suspicious and too good to be true…

“A-All the same, I think I’d like to check with them, myself…” The housekeeper tittered a little nervously, seeing Usami turn her full attention on her. “Could you… come with me to the Headmaster’s office?”

As if she was going to leave the rabbit alone with the kids. Yukizome might’ve been known to be a bit clumsy and excitable, but she wasn’t stupid. Stuffed animatronic rabbits don’t just materialize out of thin air and claim to be teachers… Not unless an Ultimate was behind it, somehow. And Yukizome was almost positive that’s what this was, a student up to mischief.

Yukizome gazed out at the students in concern as they murmured amongst themselves at the bizarre turn of events. Hopefully not one of her kids, though…

“I’m sorry, Yukizome-chan! We don’t have time for that!” Usami pumped her magic wand into the air excitedly. “We have to be going for the **school trip** soon~!”

“School trip…?” Byakuya clenched a fist and gritted his teeth in frustration as he glared at the rabbit. “Hey, what do you mean, school trip…?”

“I think I’d like to know that, too…” Yukizome felt her trepidation rising.

Usami clutched her belly, giggling in delight.

“A large group of students go on a chaperoned trip with a lead teacher! It’s the biggest event of the school year!”

“W-We’re not looking for such a literal answer…” Hajime frowned suspiciously.

Usami pumped her paw in the air excitedly.

“Now let’s depart for the fun school trip!”

_‘Depart…?’_ Hajime was sure he wasn’t the only one echoing that perturbing thought.

But none of them had time to properly react, not even Yukizome. Usami spun her wand around merrily and created another sparkly, blinding pink light that soon enveloped the room… The ceiling and walls soon cracked open like a box or a stage set, leaving the eighteen of them standing on a picturesque beach – palm trees, sea gulls, cliffs in the distance, the calming sound of ocean waves crashing along the beach…

Just like that, they were on a tropical island. No lengthy boat or plane ride to reach it… they were just… there. From the bustling heart of Tokyo to a tropical island none of them had seen before…

The lack of transition was simply too much for Hajime.

“… Huh?!” He blurted out, looking around in bewilderment. The world just stopped… making sense. Blue sky, white clouds. Blue sea, white waves… “What… the hell is this?!”

No matter how hard he tried to rationalize it, this was… abnormal. Clearly unreasonable. Utterly crazy. Blatantly wrong…

“Huh…?” Teruteru was as bewildered as Hajime as. As they all were. “Wh-Wh-Whaaat?!”

“This is a joke… right?” Souda massaged his forehead, looking around with wide, disbelieving eyes.

“Wh-Where are we?!” Ibuki cried out.

“Huh?! What’s going on?!” Mahiru cupped a hand over her mouth in shock.

Usami pumped her paw in the air again.

“Everyone, please remain calm! There is no reason to panic! Seeeeee? Look around! Feast your eyes on this beautiful ocean… It’s like your heart is being washed clean, isn’t it…? It washes away everything… even all the bad things…”

Peko’s mouth became a thin line as she whirled on the rabbit sternly.

“Hold on, give us the details…! Where in the world are we?”

Usami hummed thoughtfully.

“’Where’ are we…? Well, obviously we’re… ‘Out where it’s better! Out where it’s wetter!’ Out by the sea~!”

Mikan trembled fearfully.

“I-I understand this is the sea, but… what are we doing here?!”

“You know… your throat’s going to get hoarse if you keep screaming like that.” Usami mused.

Sonia’s brow furrowed in concern as she poked her fingers together nervously.

“But… we were just at school and now we are by the sea… This is impossible…”

“Please do not worry. The school trip has just started, that’s all!”

Yukizome placed her hands on her hips, staring down at the rabbit sternly, as it was no longer on a podium. In fact, even all the desks had disappeared by now… As inexplicably as everything else that had miraculously appeared…

“Usami, school trips don’t just spontaneously **happen**!” She paused, as if reflecting on a prior experience. “… Not on the first day of school! Now where have you taken us?!”

Ibuki raised a finger defiantly.

“She’s right~! You totally skipped alllll the stuff that comes first…!”

Hajime nodded faintly.

“We’re supposed to be attending Hope’s Peak Academy…”

Usami hummed thoughtfully.

“Hope’s Peak Academy? Hmm… I see, I see~… You don’t say… You guys are feeling unsure about Hope’s Peak Academy. Then, in that case…” Usami threw her paws in the air dramatically. “Please forget about Hope’s Peak Academy! That’s why we’re having a school trip in the first place~!”

“… Huh?” Hajime muttered.

Fuyuhiko clenched his fist as he shouted furiously.

“The hell do you mean we should forget about it?!”

Byakuya held a similar disposition.

“Hey… what are you? Just what are you scheming?”

Usami gasped in shock, paw over her mouth in horror.

“Wh-Wh-Whaaat?! I’m not scheming anything! I’m doing this for everyone’s sake! I’m praying from the bottom of my heart that **Hope** will grow within everyone’s hearts! There’s nothing dangerous on **this island** whatsoever! So please, there’s no need to worry at all!”

Nagito raised a pointer finger matter-of-factly.

“Island…? Did you just say ‘island’?”

“Yup, and it’s certainly beautiful.” Usami giggled again. “It was prepared just for us, an island free from other people and danger.”

Mukuro tilted her head curiously.

“Are you saying this island is uninhabited…?”

Nagito reeled back in horror and… some other emotion that Hajime couldn’t quite decipher.

“Perhaps… you brought us to this uninhabited island to make us kill each other?!”

“Ha-wa-wa?! Kill each other?!” Usami didn’t like that suggestion, not one bit. “Nuh-uh, no way! Bloody business, like causing violence or inflicting pain, is a big no-no on this island! Even the word **kill** … Just saying it horrifies me! Kyaaah! So scary…!”

“Then… what is this ‘school trip’ you mentioned?” Byakuya demanded. “What do you intend for us to do on this island?”

Usami became pumped again.

“All righty! I shall announce it to everyone right now! While you all relax on this island paradise, you must get along and strengthen your bonds with each other! That is the main rule on this **heart-throbbing school trip**! Spend these peaceful and relaxing days nourishing Hope and lazing about, free from pain, free from suffering… Truly, this lovey-dovey **heart-throbbing school trip** is… everyone’s homework!”

Hajime stared at Usami like she was crazy.

“Wha… What the hell does that even mean…?!” But even so, Usami announced yet again the start of the heart-throbbing school trip… It went without saying, but Hajime had no idea what she was talking about. He couldn’t follow her words at all.

And then, just like that… Like a curtain slowly lowering… His mind ground to a halt.

~*~

In the present, Hajime remembered everything.

“Hey… are you sure you’re okay?” Komaeda asked, once Hinata had finally recovered enough to stand on his own two feet. The brown-haired boy stared around at the beach, moodily.

“… Leave me alone.” Hajime snapped. He didn’t mean to be rude, but waking up to find himself still trapped on this island… Well, let’s just say he would’ve preferred waking up in his old bed, living his average life at his average former high school. It would have sucked that his acceptance to Hope’s Peak was a wild delusion… but at least the world would make sense.

“Th-There’s no way I can leave someone alone when they look that pale…” Komaeda defended his nosiness as he looked to Hinata in concern.

Hajime just scowled and drank in the view once more. White sandy beach… Crystal blue ocean… The sun’s rays beaming down on him… The soft, tropical wind brushing against his skin… He still didn’t know what the hell was going on.

_‘I was supposed to attend Hope’s Peak Academy! Why did this…? Why… am I here at a place like this?!’_ Hajime thought to himself in anguish. Out loud, he said, “That rabbit thing said we’re… on a tropical island.”

Komaeda just nodded indulgently.

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Hajime looked around more alertly. Some things that he had missed on first inspection – there was a monitor strapped to a palm tree, and a surveillance camera on a tripod just outside the range of the peaceful rolling ocean waves. When he voiced his panic over possibly being monitored, a third person answered him, making Hajime nearly jump out of his skin at the fact that this was the **second** time he had overlooked that girl…

“Well, like Komaeda-kun said, we’re probably just being watched for our safety…” Mukuro muttered from her place by the palm tree.

Hajime sagged as he looked over at the soldier. Not only because this was becoming a habit where he didn’t notice her presence, but because of her apparent stance on all of this.

“P-Probably?! No matter how you look at it, this whole situation is clearly suspicious, you know?!” He twitched a little as the soldier just shrugged nonchalantly. Komaeda laughed with a carefree tone.

“It’s a waste of time to think about it. Best not to worry!” As Hajime looked at him warily, Nagito crossed his arms and smiled. “So, how are you feeling? Are you calmed down now? I understand your confusion after everything that’s happened… Maybe you’ll feel better if we introduce ourselves?”

Hajime shook his head, staring down at the sand in frustration.

“We already did that… A-And besides! Don’t you think our first priority should be getting off this island?!”

Komaeda loosely shrugged his shoulders, keeping arms crossed.

“Well, it’s not like some of the others aren’t looking into that, exploring the island… Yukizome-sensei was especially alarmed when she found she didn’t have her cell phone. But it’s not like it’s the end of the world, right? Usami said this trip is supposed to help us get along… If anything, our isolation is to keep us focused, no distractions!”

… Hajime wanted to slug the smug grin off of Nagito’s face when he **casually** mentioned the lack of cell phones. The luckster didn’t say that specifically, but Hajime didn’t have to check his suspiciously light pockets to know that he was in the same predicament… Even if they were somehow outside the range of towers, it would’ve been nice if that blasted rabbit had allowed them to keep **some** creature comforts… For what little good that would have done them without phone chargers.

Hajime took a deep, calming breath and exhaled raggedly.

“… So to summarize, we’ve been kidnapped, stranded on an uninhabitable island with no communication to the outside world, and have no obvious means of escape? Wonderful. Any other ‘good news’ I should be made aware of?” Maybe the rabbit had gone full on psychotic while he’d been snoozing…

“You don’t have to put it so pessimistically~…” Nagito tried, and failed, to reassure the brunet. “I might be a pessimist when it comes to myself, but **you guys** are symbols of Hope! There’s no way you’ll be defeated by something like this… I wouldn’t even call this a trial~!”

Hajime deadpanned at the luckster. Nagito was pleasant, and Hajime knew his ire was mostly from this messed up situation, but there was such a thing as being **too** chill about everything!

“Is… Is he always like this?” Hajime asked, turning to Mukuro with a pleading expression. He wanted her to be as lost as he was, to not have any idea about Nagito’s attitude…

“Komaeda-kun is used to going with the flow…” Mukuro shrugged nonchalantly again, to the brunet’s dismay. “Hope’s Peak apparently wanted to study his luck, so he must be used to bizarre situations.”

Komaeda laughed lightly.

“I don’t know about ‘bizarre’… Maybe for you guys these kinds of things are weird, but for me, anything’s possible~!” The luckster held up his hands peacefully before crossing his arms again and grinning. “I never did think an average, talentless guy like myself would ever get into Hope’s Peak… At first I declined. I didn’t deserve it! But they told me they really wanted me to attend… Apparently, not even the school fully understands my **luck**. Hope’s Peak truly is amazing if they can keep researching something as vague as ‘luck’, year after year with their annual lottery… But thanks to that, a guy like me was able to attend, so I am grateful! I do feel a little out of place here, though…”

Hajime stared at the luckster for a while after the more in-depth introduction.

_‘Komaeda doesn’t seem like the most reliable guy… But I don’t think that makes him a bad person, either. I… guess I should cut him a break. We’re all in this insane situation, and we all have our ways of coping… I wish I could be as calm and collected.’_ His eyes panned over to the soldier. _‘Also… Ikusaba’s a soldier. I’m sure being kidnapped has her on high alert – she’s just better at schooling her emotions, I guess. You’d have to be, to survive on the battlefield…’_

As the brunet ruminated on all this, Komaeda dropped his arms but kept up his smile.

“Now then, it’s your turn. What is **your** Ultimate talent, Hinata-kun?”

Blinking, Hajime turned back to the luckster with an owlish glance.

“Didn’t I say back in the classroom…? I… don’t remember. I still don’t remember why I was recruited by Hope’s Peak.” And that was just another thing thrown onto the pile that concerns him… No matter how hard he tried to pull that information from his memory, it was like opening a book expecting to find words, only to find blank pages instead… It was… vexing.

“I see… Still don’t remember, huh?” Komaeda hummed thoughtfully. “I’m sure you’ll remember after you’ve settled down… No need to worry. Besides, if memories are missing as you say, you’re in good company!”

Hajime smiled bitterly at what he perceived as a lame attempt to cheer him up.

“Thanks… But I think little stuff like forgetting about setting foot inside of Hope’s Peak, or the trip to this island… You guys are luckier than I am. At least you all know why you got accepted in the first place.”

Nagito held up his hands peacefully.

“Now, now, that’s not what I meant! Ikusaba’s pretty much in the same boat as you… Isn’t that right?”

As the brunet looked to her questioningly, Mukuro’s eyes panned to the side as she frowned.

“I might have told you guys my name and talent… But that’s, like, the extent of what I know about myself.” The soldier explained somberly. “All the practical stuff, my training, all this vague, general stuff… I know that, of course. But anything about **me** is just… gone. I dunno about my family, my friends, my hobbies, my interests, or even what I was like before coming here… I’m just in the dark as you about some stuff.”

Hajime winced sympathetically as the soldier bared her heart to him. She was right. Knowing ‘what’ you were but not ‘who’ had to suck just as much. Hajime would rather have the whole package than trade his own memories and identity for a talent he could take pride in… He idolized talent, but there was such a thing as too much sacrifice. After all, to take pride in one’s accomplishments, you had to **be** somebody… right? To have dreams, feelings, aspirations… to have friends, family, mentors, perhaps even rivals… It’d be lonely and miserable if you lacked all that.

At least… that’s what he **thought** he believed… Something about these circumstances rang a very distant bell in his mind. Not enough for him to drop everything and think on it right this moment… But he’d likely reflect on it later. It’s not like he wouldn’t have the time, if they were truly stuck on this island for a little while…

“Sorry…” Hajime apologized sincerely. “That’s gotta be rough. You really don’t remember **anything**?”

Mukuro tilted her head slightly.

“Well, some stuff seems familiar, just a little different… But it’s still just outta reach. Nothing springs to mind right now.”

“And… you’ve decided to hang around Komaeda, in the meantime?” Hajime figured the luckster was as good company to have around as anyone else would’ve been… It was just a little strange, since there was more sporty, athletic types around.

… Then again, it was strange picturing even athletes hanging around a soldier. It had to have been rough finding just about anywhere to fit in… Maybe Nagito wasn’t such a bad place to start, after all.

“He’s the most familiar of all.” Mukuro elaborated, as if that should have been obvious.

It’s not like she could rationalize it any better. There was just something about Komaeda that stirred up strange, warm feelings faintly within her. Feelings so unique that no one else on the island made her feel this way… Mukuro couldn’t say that she disliked it. And besides, Komaeda was accommodating of her shadowing him – most of the others were either wary of her, or just hadn’t cared enough to approach her as of yet, so when the luckster graciously accepted and welcomed her company, Mukuro jumped at the first chance.

Instincts. That’s what it all came down to. Mukuro might have forgotten much, but running on instincts seemed a perfectly natural thing for her to do… So that’s what she did. Hajime stirred up a faint reminiscence as well… Though, with his guardedness and caginess shortly after waking up, she hadn’t developed enough of an opinion on him yet. Perhaps if Komaeda-kun decided to linger around Hinata for a bit longer…

“I’m honored such a splendid Ultimate would associate with a nobody like me!” Nagito gave a carefree laugh again. “Honestly, I think it’s the first time anyone was ever that kind to me! I mean, everyone here is so amazing… But Ikusaba lowers her standards enough to **keep** hanging around me! Is this what they call friendship…? I think I almost forgot what it felt like…”

Hajime gave the luckster a strange look at the wistful tone he took.

_‘He’s still self-depreciative… But really? What kind of life has this guy had to nearly ‘forget’ what it’s like to have friends? He’s gotta have at least one… right?’_ Still, no matter how hard he thought about it, if Komaeda **did** have at least friend, then he wouldn’t be so down on himself… That’s what Hajime assumed anyway.

Again… he did not know these people. He could be jumping the gun a lot.

“Well, I think I’ll need someone to help show me around… Did you wanna do the honors?” Still, no matter what the case, Hajime was going to place his trust in the luckster for now. Maybe they could be friends, given enough time.

Mukuro’s eyes were on Hajime, coolly analyzing him, while Nagito chuckled cheerfully.

“It’d be my honor, Hinata-kun!”

With heartfelt camaraderie and determination, the three of them set out to explore the island…


	2. Prologue, Part 2:

Hajime stared at the cow incredulously as he turned to follow Komaeda and Ikusaba further into the ranch. Usami Corral…

_‘A magic trick makes sense, I guess, but messing with living things is just not cool…’_ The brunet thought to himself with a frown.

Usami’s ‘attempt to cheer Hajime up’ hadn’t exactly gone according to plan. Seeing a chicken turned into a cow was just too… bizarre. And a truly frightening power if it **was** real…

But no, no. That couldn’t have been real! Magic didn’t exist. Not in reality.

“Careful with this one.” Mukuro muttered within Hajime’s earshot, and he turned his attention to the only other person on the ranch – the blonde girl in the orange kimono.

“Squish, squish~!” Hiyoko happily cried out, sitting down and pressing her fingers down onto the ground with all her strength. Her appearance and voice made it hard for Hajime to believe she was a high school student.

“A-Ah… You’re Saionji-san… right?” Hajime asked formally as he approached the blonde, utterly disregarding the soldier’s advice without thinking. Hiyoko looked up with blinking eyes.

“Hmm…? Oh! You’re the wuss that passed out earlier!” Hiyoko snerked, muffling further giggles. Hajime smiled wryly as he extended his hand to shake hers.

“Yeah, well, a lot of crazy stuff’s been going on! Can you blame me?” The brunet chuckled in a self-depreciating manner. “Anyway, I’m Hajime Hinata… Nice to meet you.”

The dancer rolled her eyes before she went back to poking her fingers down on the ground.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re the bum who couldn’t remember his talent~…” The blond chattered disinterestedly, not acknowledging his extended hand. “You’re probably just blue collar or something reeeally dumb… But if you wanna still hang out with me and squish things, that’s cool~!”

Hajime stared at the blonde, baffled. He retracted his hand after it became clear she wasn’t going to return the courtesy of a handshake.

“Saionji’s talent has made her known as the Ultimate Traditional Dancer!” Komaeda explained for the brunet. “As a rookie, the Japanese dance industry expects a lot from her. She’s already performed overseas many times. It seems her performances are popular among young audiences, which is rare in the Japanese dance industry. Well, then again, her fans are mostly men.”

Hajime frowned thoughtfully at this information.

_‘It’s probably because she looks so young… Her fans all probably have the same niche or something.’_ He mused to himself.

“Squish, squish~!” Hiyoko cried out gleefully again, snapping the brunet out of his thoughts.

“Hey, what are you doing…?” He looked down at her. Hiyoko peered up at him with a dry look.

“I told you, I’m squishing!”

“Squishing **what**?” Hajime stressed, trying to get an understanding.

“Ant-san! I’m squishing lots of Ant-san, duh!” Hiyoko replied with mild exasperation.

“… Come again?”

Hiyoko muffled her giggles again.

“If you squish their tummies just right, it makes this awesome sound! Wanna do it together?!”

“H-Hell no…!” Hajime firmly rejected the eager offer.

“Aww, okay…” The dancer scoffed, rolling her eyes again. “Wimp.”

The brunet stared at Hiyoko incredulously.

_‘Th-This kid… Her attitude doesn’t match her appearance at all.’_ Hajime couldn’t help reflecting to himself. He knew he shouldn’t judge, but… This one seemed like a bully.

He hoped spending more time with her would change that perception… but he had this sneaking suspicion…

“I told you.” Mukuro blandly said, a few feet away from him.

Hajime turned to her and opened his mouth… and then snapped it shut. Yeah. Yeah she had… He walked straight into this one.

~*~

“This island seems like a mishmash of a ton of different stuff…” Hajime muttered as they moved onto their next destination that was directly across from the Usami Corral… a dojo. Like, a really traditional-looking one – with tatami mats and everything.

Nagito laughed lightly at Hajime’s befuddled expression as the luckster slid the entrance to the dojo open.

“I think Usami’s just trying to keep us all happy… Remember, we’ve got some spunky ones in our class!”

Hajime deadpanned as he registered the pair of individuals inside the dojo. How could he forget these two?

“Spunky… right…” The brunet faintly muttered, watching the two go at it. The “fight” was more than just a little intense… and he had to give the psycho rabbit credit where it was due, she knew how to build a dojo if these gorillas could fight in here without tearing holes in the walls and floor.

Akane moved in to strike with her knee, but Nidai impressively blocked it with his fist. They parted a couple moments later, and Akane then moved back in Nidai’s personal space, moving to punch at his face which he pulled away from with ease. A moment later, she spun around in the air and tried to close the gap with a twirling kick, but Nidai ducked on instinct and curled his hand into a fist, poised for a devastating strike.

_‘Wh-What the heck is this…?’_ Hajime wondered, absolutely lost as he watched the intense contest go on.

“MUDADADADADADADADADA!” The gymnast eccentrically cried out.

Nidai scoffed.

“Your speed is adequate, but it’s still not enough! Each blow you land is still soft!” The coach continued to lecture her. “You’re not using your muscles properly! Your athletic body is going to waste!”

Akane groaned loudly.

“Shut up! All I gotta do is win!”

“… What was that? You’re gonna win? **Against me**?” Nidai challenged, before dealing the final blow. “That’s quite… **ABSUUUUUUUUUURD**!!!”

“GWAAAAAAAAAAH!” Akane cried out in agony as his punch connected with her gut with a seeming electrical effect to go along with it, prompting her to drop to her hands and knees on the floor. Nidai towered over her, cracking his knuckles.

“Had enough? Have you learned your lesson?” The coach woefully shook his head. “Akane… at your current power level, you cannot even defeat a mere team manager. The way you use your muscles, your reflexes… it’s all half-assed!”

Hajime spluttered at the display.

“F-F-Forget that…! Why are you two fighting?! Isn’t **excessive violence** against the rules?!” The rabbit had explained the e-handbooks and the few rules she bestowed upon them… Hell, the violence thing was Rule #1 – they were supposed to live “peaceful and relaxing” lives…

This looked like anything but.

“ **What are you talking about**?!” Nidai roared passionately. “This isn’t an actual fight, this is **training**! We both agreed to it when Akane initiated this contest, so we’re not violating any rules at all!!!”

Hajime opened and closed his mouth in attempts to refute the boisterous man… But he just couldn’t find the words. Not because he couldn’t argue… but because he didn’t even know where to begin. He turned for help from his companions, anything to help this meathead see **sense** , but he only received a lighthearted, carefree laugh from Komaeda and a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders from Ikusaba.

… Wonderful.

“Nidai checked his blows.” The soldier added conversationally. “Akane was never in any danger. Out of her league, but for a half-assed rookie she holds potential.”

Nidai rubbed the back of his head and belted out a hearty laugh.

“Couldn’t have put it better, myself! Akane’s got an ominous fighting style to her, even if it’s wild and unfocused… Oh, I’m not letting **this** one go to waste!”

Hajime stared incredulously between Mukuro and Nekomaru before craning his head to Nagito, who chuckled so casually…

“Nidai-kun is the Ultimate Team Manager, Hinata! I think we can trust his expertise in this kinda thing, y’know? Nidai-kun has traveled to numerous towns and played an active role in various sports clubs managing their teams. He even led some high school rugby team full of delinquents to victory in the national play-offs… He also rescued a baseball club on the verge of being shut down, and led them to national victory as well… Rumor has it that he’s been training that famous Japanese pitcher who plays in the American League. If anyone can refine another Ultimate’s athletic prowess, don’t you think the most qualified person for the job would be the Ultimate Team Manager?”

Hajime rubbed his chin nervously as he frowned.

“Y-Yeah, I guess so…” If all of that was true, Nidai definitely earned his title. But with a body like that, wasn’t he better off playing on a team rather than managing it?

Akane stood up, groaning.

“Ugh! I thought I could blow off some of my pent-up energy with a smackdown, but who knew this Old Man would be so tough? If I’ve got strong opponents like him here, I’m never gonna be bored!” The dark-skinned girl stretched her back to get some kinks out of it before grinning like a loon. “So who’s next?! You up for a round, Ikusaba? Or how ‘bout you dudes?”

Hajime stared at the gymnast like she’d grown a second head, while Nagito held up his hands peacefully and chuckled weakly.

“Now, now, compared to Nidai-kun, I’d be a waste of a sparring partner! Ikusaba-san would be a much better fit for you… Or maybe Hinata-kun would be willing…?”

Hajime’s head snapped to the luckster. Oh, **hell** no!

“I don’t really see the point.” Mukuro tilted her head at the gymnast’s scrappy nature. “You are not in prime condition, and I got to observe the way you fight. Your loss would be a foregone conclusion.”

Akane roared in determination, pumping her chest out and arms in the air.

“You sayin’ I would lose ‘cause of all that?! All ya need to win is guts, and I got plenty of ‘em!!! Don’t get cocky just ‘cause you’ve been to war! **I’ll** give ya a war you won’t soon forget!”

Mukuro’s head remained tilted as she was unaffected by the passionate ramblings. Nidai crossed his arms and nodded sagely.

“Akane, you take five… I’ve wanted to see what Ikusaba is made of from the moment I heard about her talent!”

Mukuro blinked slowly.

“… There’s no point in fighting you, either, though.” Mukuro shot down his challenge, too.

Nidai growled lowly in determination.

“Hmm…?! Are you saying I couldn’t handle you?! That is… ABSUUUUURD!”

Mukuro shook her head.

“No. In a straight-up fight, I can tell you would win.” The soldier flatly gave her assessment. It would be a mostly even spar – she’d do better than Akane did – but Nidai had this overwhelming brute strength, and he was nimble on his feet, too. As the Ultimate Soldier, Mukuro was well aware that there were opponents out there who could overpower her in a fair fight… That’s why it was also in her skillset to find ways to work around such conditions.

Mukuro already had some ideas – none of them would please these battle junkies, but they’d be ways for Mukuro to incapacitate Nekomaru if she ever needed to…

“Are you saying that only victory or success can bring happiness in life?!” Nidai roared passionately.

The soldier could only tilt her head again at the man’s words. Of course victory was important. Victory meant life or death on a mission or in a battle. If you couldn’t kill or incapacitate the enemy, they were more likely to be unmerciful and end your life unless you were somehow inconsequential to the main objective… Which, again, most of the time was **not** the case, because whoever you didn’t kill would most certainly come back to kill you, so it was far safer to just cut down your enemies and be done with them…

That was the way of war. Defeat served no higher purpose. Mukuro explained as such to Nekomaru, who airily sighed at her philosophy.

“Ikusaba, you are a gifted soldier, but sometimes you need to take a step back and view the bigger picture!” The Ultimate Team Manager philosophized right back at her. “You don’t just naturally go into those missions of yours and succeed, do you?! **NO**! You train **hard** for them, build those muscles and master those reflexes! And in training, failure can be a great teacher! After all, in training you can learn how to overcome those weaknesses! Something you **can’t** do out on the battlefield!”

Mukuro tilted her head to the other side as she considered that argument. The reasoning was sound, but…

“I’m not training to beat you, though.” The soldier deadpanned. She didn’t need to. Mukuro had workarounds for the stronger opponents; she didn’t have to be the strongest or the fastest. Again, a spar would have no purpose for her.

“BUT THERE **IS** PURPOSE FOR MEEE!” Nidai bellowed at the top of his lungs. “As the Ultimate Team Manager, I want to see **everything** you got! Don’t even think about holding back!!!”

Mukuro could see her rejections to the challenges were having no effect… Well, if all he wanted was a sparring match, the soldier didn’t have a real reason to deny him except to keep her own style a secret… But, it’s not like they were enemies in the truest sense, so she stood to lose little by exposing herself.

Hajime and Nagito took this time to vacate the dojo, as they could tell it was about to get even more intense in there…

~*~

Just up the road from the ranch and dojo, there was a hotel complex. Hotel Mirai… The way that it was arranged was that there was the main facility, an older looking building beside it, and eighteen small cottages lined up towards the front of the complex. The cottages were divided into a section for the boys, and a section for the girls; meaning it was a little lopsided since there were ten girls and eight boys. Yukizome-sensei’s was positioned toward the far end of the girls’ cottages, facing Hajime as he looked towards it with a raised eyebrow – it appeared no different from the rest of theirs, despite her being the teacher. The other girls’ cottages were in rows of four and five, while the boys’ cottages were just in rows of four. Speaking of his own cottage, Hajime’s was immediately to his left, facing away from Hotel Mirai’s main building.

“Wow! Pretty nice hotel!” Hajime, once again, had to give the rabbit credit where it was due. The cottages had little trenches of water around them, and there was also an impressive pool between the main facility and the cottages, with beach chairs and umbrellas and tables situated around the pool.

Nagito hummed thoughtfully as he rubbed his chin.

“The **Hotel Mirai** , huh? It looks like it’s named for the Japanese word for ‘future’. When we were told to live on this island, I was worried we’d have to pitch a tent or something… If we can live in a grand hotel like this, I don’t think we’ll have to worry about being comfortable.”

Hajime frowned at that attitude.

“Comfort isn’t an option here… We don’t even know why we’re being forced to live on this island… How can you just accept this?! You’re way too excited about living here!”

Nagito crossed his arms and smiled calmly.

“Well, it seems obvious this area would make a good base, so why don’t we look around for a bit?”

Hajime sighed again and looked down with clenched fists.

_‘Why is this guy so… calm? It’s like he doesn’t think this situation is a big deal at all… Has he been through a lot of trauma or something?’_ The brunet shook his head and proceeded deeper into the hotel site. He could see two people outside the hotel – the short blond boy in the pinstripe suit, and the redheaded girl. If he recalled correctly, they were the Ultimate Yakuza and the Ultimate Photographer, respectively. They weren’t standing together – the yakuza was moodily glaring down at the pool, while the photographer was over by the old looking building.

… Obviously, he approached Mahiru first. Maybe she wouldn’t bite his head off.

“Hey, aren’t you the guy who was squatting on the beach earlier and burying your face in your arms?” Then again…

“Uh, y-yeah…” Hajime could only smile wryly as the girl placed her hands on her hips and scowled.

“Hey… You gotta keep it together, you know? At times like this, it’s the boys’ job to keep the girls safe.”

“Y-Yeah, you’re right…” The brunet couldn’t shake off the meekness. Mahiru definitely had an attitude to her…

“Did you want me to introduce myself? We didn’t get much, beyond names…” The photographer mused thoughtfully. “Come to think of it, you didn’t even mention your talent…”

Hajime rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

“Y-Yeah… I… still can’t remember what that is. B-But I remember you’re the Ultimate Photographer, so I’m sure you take some amazing shots!” The brunet breathed a little easier as Mahiru smiled kindly at the praise. Maybe he could get along with her, after all.

“Of course!” Nagito butted into the conversation, giving that carefree grin of his as he raised a hand. “Koizumi is an Ultimate! She has a promising future as a photojournalist… I’m not an expert on photography but I hear she’s a young photographer who has won numerous awards. On that note… she’s known for her skill at taking pictures of people.”

_‘Well, I don’t doubt her ability…’_ Hajime mused to himself. _‘I just hope I can stay on her good side.’_

“Honestly, I’m a little relieved. You guys seem decent enough…” Mahiru confessed as she looked off to the side.

“Hm? Decent?” Hajime tilted his head curiously. The photographer giggled.

“Well, there’s a lot of weirdos here. I can’t tell if they’re really Ultimates or, like, just insane… I’m eager to **get along with everyone so we can get off this island** , but I was worried things wouldn’t go well.”

Hajime blinked at the phrasing, but then he remembered.

“Get off this island…? Oh. You’re referring to that second rule…” Mahiru had basically reiterated what that rule entailed, just, there were supposed ‘Hope Fragments’ involved… Whatever those were.

Well, his e-handbook had been going off when he interacted with the students here… It was probably something to do with that.

Mahiru nodded happily.

“Right! Once we’ve collected all the Hope Fragments, we’re done! This joke of a school trip will be over, and we can all leave this island together.”

“I dunno… it just seems so… weird.” Hajime crossed his arms and stared down at the ground, deep in thought. “Why even kidnap us if that’s all they wanted to make us do? What’s the point…?”

Mahiru huffed exasperatedly, hands on her hips.

“Jeez! You don’t have to be so skeptical… Usami seems decent enough, and even Yukizome-sensei stopped fighting her!” Well, that wasn’t the complete truth – their teacher was clearly still wary of the rabbit, but right now she was busying herself looking over the island for anything dangerous and overall making sure the students weren’t getting into trouble.

Nagito crossed his arms, too, smiling at Hajime.

“I might not know why we’re here, but like Koizumi said, if that’s all we have to do to go home, then that’s all there is to it. Overall, I’m glad. I mean, it’s not really that big of a deal.”

Hajime sent the luckster another withering look. Really? Being whisked away to this uninhabited island and then told to forget about Hope’s Peak, **nothing** about that seemed suspicious to this guy?!

“So what about you?” Mahiru asked the brunet, startling him.

“E-Eh?”

“Don’t ‘eh’ me!” Mahiru sternly told him. “I’ve been waiting, like, forever, you know! How about sharing a little bit about yourself?!”

Hajime wilted at the tone and words, feebly nodding in acceptance.

“W-Well, there’s not really a whole lot to tell. I’m a pretty average guy. I’m not… all too certain what it is that Hope’s Peak found interesting about me, but… If I had to say anything that sticks out, I definitely admire Hope’s Peak more than most people, I guess. It’s… It’s not just a school to me, y’know? Ultimates are really amazing people… You guys definitely have reason to be proud about the stuff you can do! I… I’ve always wanted to have that kind of confidence in myself, too. To be really good at something…”

Mahiru hummed thoughtfully.

“Personally, I think you might be overhyping it a bit… I mean, I take pictures of just… whatever. Compared to some of these other guys, I’m nothing special. I can understand feeling like a plain Jane around here… You’re not the only one who feels like that.”

Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly.

“Even something ‘simple’ like taking pictures… There’s meaning in that, y’know? You’re not just doing some pointless thing – you’re capturing memories on film. Film might fade away after enough time, but it still prolongs the life of those precious memories, even decades after their time. And if you store them digitally, that’s another long term way to prolong the life of those memories! Don’t you think that’s incredible? And Hope’s Peak said you’re the best at this!”

Mahiru stared at Hajime a while after he declared that, hand over her mouth frozen in surprise. Nagito chuckled warmly at the earnest, heartfelt compliment.

“Ultimates really are worthy of praise! It’s no use being modest, Koizumi! Hope’s Peak **did** choose you, so you were born with an amazing talent that was destined to be acknowledged!”

But the photographer didn’t pay attention to Nagito; her eyes were still on Hajime, and on his words. To her, Hajime’s compliment was more personal, more thought out – she didn’t believe in stuff like ‘destiny’ or whatever. Slowly, she shook her head to clear it. She clasped her hands behind her back and shy stared at the brunet, faintly blushing.

“Well, I still dunno about all that… B-But it’s a nice thought… Thank you.”

Hajime himself blushed a little as he reflected on his own words and how they sounded out loud. Perhaps he’d been a little too direct or gung-ho… Still, they were his honest feelings. He really felt Ultimates were amazing – that included the Ultimate Photographer, even when he hadn’t seen her photos yet…

“Name’s Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu… Just so we’re clear, I don’t plan to act friendly and shit with you guys.”

… The next interaction popped the warm and fuzzies in Hajime’s chest, but to be fair… he was expecting that. He couldn’t put off meeting the rest of his classmates forever.

“Kuzuryu-kun is a high school student and heir the Kuzuryu Clan…” Komaeda supplied helpfully as Hajime mused about the best way to approach a discussion with this kid. He had a babyface, but he was pretty rude… “I’m sure you’ve at least heard of them, right? The Kuzuryu Clan is the largest crime syndicate in the nation, with membership surpassing 30,000. Which means… he’s the **Ultimate Yakuza**.”

_‘In addition to being an heir to a yakuza clan… It’s **the** Kuzuryu Clan, no less?’ _Hajime thought to himself, well and truly intimidated.

“By the way, mentioning his **babyface** around him is expressly forbidden, so you better be careful~…” Nagito grinned so casually. “… You’ll run out of fingers before he’s done with you.”

_‘Th-That was close… I nearly lost all my fingers…’_ Hajime thought to himself nervously. “Komaeda, you’re like, my savior or something.”

Nagito chuckled sheepishly, holding up his hands.

“Haha, you’re just exaggerating… uh, guess not.”

Fuyuhiko scoffed, arms crossed and looking away from them moodily.

“Hey, bastards… If we’re all done here, how ‘bout you dumbasses make like a tree and fuck off?”

… Well, guess they were done! Hajime was quick to make himself scarce.

~*~

Hajime looked around the lobby of the main building, impressed by the small arcade they had in there. Not just game tables, there were also various arcade machines, pinball machines, and pool tables in the back. It was almost like a gamer’s paradise. And the carpet, sofas, and beanbag chairs looked pretty nice, too… They were really living in luxury here…

And that still had Hajime antsy about **why** they were here…

“Yeah… Even the inside of this place looks grand, too…” Nagito laughed lightly as Hajime kept gazing around the lobby.

“If this was really a normal school trip, I’d be smiling by now…” Hajime muttered. “But… why are we the only ones here?”

“It’s an uninhabited island, it can’t be helped.” Nagito raised his hands peacefully.

_‘For an uninhabited island, this place looks pretty well kept, and it seems electricity won’ be an issue… What in the world is going on with this island?’_ Seeing that there was two others in the lobby besides Nagito and himself, Hajime decided to approach one of the girls. The swordswoman, if he recalled correctly.

“… State your business.” Peko tersely commanded, staring at the brunet warily.

Hajime rubbed the back of his head nervously.

“I… just wanted to stop and introduce myself? Is that okay?”

Peko closed her eyes calmly.

“An introduction…? I see, understood.”

The brunet nodded.

“Well, I’m Hajime Hinata… And, I remember you said your name was Pekoyama. It’s nice to meet you.”

Peko nodded in response.

“Indeed. I hope we will be able to cooperate together.”

“It’s hard to believe someone with a cute name like Peko Pekoyama could be so skilled with a blade.” Nagito piped up, smiling easily. “I’ve heard she’s a kendo master and that most adult men don’t even stand a chance against her.”

_‘Well, there’s definitely something up with her… Her eyes are really intense.’_ Hajime thought to himself, feeling intimidated by the Ultimate Swordswoman.

“If what that rabbit said is true, we will be expected to live on this island together…” Peko mused.

“Yeah, basically…” Hajime agreed.

“It is necessary for men and women who live together to respect each other… Don’t try anything inappropriate. I would prefer not to kill anyone…” Peko casually spoke this, but there was an underlying level of steel to her tone.

“Kill…?” Hajime blinked in astonishment. “Isn’t that sword on your back made of bamboo?”

Peko nodded in confirmation.

“Though it may seem impossible to kill someone with this, a misaimed blow can be fatal. Well, an aimed blow can be fatal, too…” She mused speculatively. Hajime shivered and nodded nervously.

_‘… I’ll keep that in mind.’_

Hajime quickly moved onto the other girl in the lobby, to escape Peko’s hawkish gaze. The Ultimate Gamer was pretty engrossed in the table she was playing at, and didn’t notice Hajime’s approach. Nagito came up from behind him.

“Hey, Hajime, you haven’t talked to her yet, either, right?”

“Y-Yeah… you’re right…” Hajime agreed. He turned to the rather focused girl. “Hey, um… I haven’t introduced myself to you yet, but…”

When she didn’t respond, the luckster called out to her.

“Hey, Chiaki?”

The gamer jumped a little before turning to them fully.

“Oh, sorry… I must’ve been… a little too focused on my game…”

“A little…? Are you sure about that?” Nagito laughed lightly.

Hajime rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

“I don’t blame you… I know you’re the Ultimate Gamer, so these obviously mean a lot to you, right?”

Chiaki nodded faintly.

“Video games are my hobby, and I’m a fan of all genres. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, too.” Hajime agreed as the girl spaced out again, looking back to her game.

“… Yeah, totally.”

_‘This conversation is going a little slow…’_ Hajime thought to himself.

“Well, she is gaming right now…” Nagito remarked, like he could read Hajime’s thoughts.

“It’s more like… I’m the kind of person who has to gather my thoughts before I start talking… Like, I can’t talk that well unless I’ve already prepared everything I want to say in my head. Especially when I’m meeting new people… Well, if I get used to them, I can usually talk a little faster.”

_‘She may be the **Ultimate Gamer** , but how can she be focused on games at a time like this…?’ _Hajime shook his head and decided to leave the girl to it. She yawned as he made his way up the stairs.

~*~

Upstairs was a restaurant filled with tables and chairs, along with buffet tables toward the back and a doorway that led to a kitchen.

“It’s enormous.” Nagito mused, right beside Hajime. “We can easily hold a banquet here. It kind of has this tropical, open country feeling.”

“Open? Even though we’re stuck on this island?” The brunet asked skeptically.

“Are we really stuck here…?” Nagito wondered, rubbing his chin.

“What else could it be…?” Hajime played the devil’s advocate.

“Well, let’s go introduce ourselves for now. Look, there’s two people over there.” Nagito deflected, pointing over at Sonia and Teruteru.

“That’s right… I’m having a hard time because it’s full of poison. It really sucks.” Teruteru chortled, eyeing the princess in a perverted manner. … He had a nosebleed, for crying out loud. “Speaking of which, it’d be great if you could use your mouth to suck it out…”

“Poison…? I see…” Sonia murmured, not seeming like she was all ‘there’ at the moment.

“H-Hey… Do you guys have a moment…?” Hajime butted into the conversation, having a bad feeling about it.

“Whoa… denied…” Teruteru combed his hair suavely, grinning nervously.

“Hello, it is nice to meet you.” Sonia greeted formally.

“Hey, I’m Hajime Hinata. It’s nice to meet you, too.” Hajime greeted back in kind.

“Hey, you must be the new guy.” Teruteru mused, still combing his hair.

“You’re the Ultimate Cook, right?” Hajime asked before turning to Sonia, too. “And you’re the Ultimate Princess.”

“Could you call me the Ultimate Chef instead? It has more of a… big city flavor to it, ya know? Mmhmhmhm… I hope we get along well…” The chef chuckled suggestively.

Sonia beamed pleasantly at Hajime.

“I am a foreign exchange student from a small European kingdom called **Novoselic** … I may cause trouble here and there, but I hope we can get along well.”

“Same here… I hope we can get along, too.” Hajime agreed to both of their intros. He gazed at Sonia, feeling drawn in. _‘White porcelain skin… Sparkling blue eyes… And her hair glitters like fields of wheat… It’s like… she has this mysterious charm that I want to gaze at forever…’_

“Are you enchanted?” Nagito teased. “Well, that probably can’t be helped. She’s the **Ultimate Princess** , you know.”

_‘True…’_ Hajime acknowledged in his head. _‘It’s not just her beauty, she’s just so graceful… I’m completely at ease even though she’s a real princess.’_

“Um, this may be rude of me to say, but… Truthfully, I feel happy.” Sonia said with a pleasant grin.

Hajime tilted his head curiously.

“Happy…? About what?”

Sonia looked off to the side calmly.

“In my home country, I… did not even have a single friend my age whose standing in society matched my own. So, to be able to do something like this with everyone is a new experience for me… I shall extol your virtues!” The princess suddenly took a righteous stance.

“Th-Thanks…” Hajime grinned nervously. _‘What the…? I suddenly feel the urge to drop to one knee and bow…’_

“H-Hey, you three, am I being left off the menu or something?” Teruteru cut in, looking a little put out.

Nagito chuckled lightly.

“Oh Teruteru, it’s so like you to check out the restaurant first! As the Ultimate Chef, do you like it?”

Teruteru chuckled suggestively.

“Mmhmhmhm… I would be lying if I said I wasn’t interested. And since I do not want to be a liar, then truthfully… Yeah, I like it. Though I like the big city flavor of my hometown, a country atmosphere like this is also splendid. Mmhmhmhm…!”

“Hey, are you…?” Hajime asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Refined? Cultured? Guilty as charged!” Teruteru combed his hair once again. Hajime shook his head.

“No, not that… You just don’t seem very worried, huh?”

“Worried? What’s there to be worried about? Actually, I’m really happy.” The chef remarked proudly.

“Happy…? Why is that?” The brunet asked curiously.

“If I can get serious real quick… I have a sneaking suspicion Pekoyama-san is actually a bit of a freak, if you catch my meaning~! What do you think?” Teruteru was having a nosebleed again…

“Uh…” Hajime trailed off, not really sure how to respond.

“She’s probably wearing a black thong, too! What are your thoughts on that? Now then, shall we discuss this somewhere privately…?” Teruteru wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Hajime took a step back warily. “C’mon, c’mon, c’mon, c’mon!”

“… No thanks.” Hajime flatly rejected the perverted chef.

Teruteru rubbed his chin speculatively.

“Well, putting that aside for now… This also might seem unexpected to you, but… I feel like Nevermind-san over there has a good chance of putting out. You see, everybody knows princesses are groomed to lack common sense, right? For example, I could tell her my ‘loins’ are full of poison and ask her to suck it out…”

Hajime blinked owlishly.

_‘Is that why he was talking about poison earlier…?’_

“Pardon me, what are you talking about?” Sonia asked with a tilt of her head.

Teruteru grinned mischievously.

“We’ll discuss this later!”

“… I’d better not see you try that again.” Nagito told the chef sternly. Teruteru just combed his hair casually.

“Anyway, when I fantasize like that, I can’t help looking forward to living on this island. When it comes to cooking and love, passion is the most important ingredient! Mmhmhmhm!”

_‘This guy seems… dangerous, but for a completely different reason.’_ Hajime decided sagely, warily keeping an eye on the chef and how close they were standing to each other.

~*~

If one half of the island was diverse with a ranch, dojo, and hotel, then the other half of the island was just as diverse. From what Hajime could see as he and Nagito kept travelling the road between destinations, there was a small zoo, a supermarket, a service shop, and… an airport.

They stopped by the supermarket first. Rocketpunch Market was its name.

“So this is the supermarket… It’s pretty big.” Hajime muttered as they walked into it. _‘If we’re on a tropical island, does that mean we’re in international waters?’_

Nagito grinned as he looked around the store lazily.

“Thanks to this place, we don’t need to worry about food and other necessities for a while.”

“For a while?” Hajime deadpanned, to which Nagito held up his hands peacefully.

“It’s just a figure of speech!”

Hajime shook his head, looking around suspiciously.

“There’s no guarantee anything here is edible. What if all this stuff is poisoned?”

“Hmm… You certainly are the skeptical type.” Nagito frowned thoughtfully. Hajime exploded at that, a little.

“Of course I am! Even this supermarket is strange. Look around! We’re in this gigantic supermarket and there’s nobody else here except us!”

Nagito crossed his arms and smiled calmly.

“Well, that can’t be helped. Didn’t Usami say this island is uninhabited?”

“Th-That’s exactly my point…” Hajime breathed a weary sigh as it became clear they were going to disagree on this, yet again. “Ugh!”

“What happened?” Nagito asked in concern.

“It’s nothing…” Hajime grumbled sourly. He then noticed he was being stared at by the purple-haired girl a few feet away from where he was standing… The nurse, if he recalled correctly. _‘She’s staring at me funny…!’_

“Ah, uhh, um… Um… You know…” Mikan nervously tittered before bowing her head in shame. “U-Um… I-I’m sorry…!”

_‘Wh-Why is she crying?!’_ As the nurse began doing that suddenly.

“Bullying a girl… Not cool, Hinata.” Nagito lectured him, a knowing smile on his face. Hajime deadpanned at the luckster.

“I didn’t even **do** anything…!”

Mikan nodded slowly, poking her fingers together.

“A-Ah, so your name is Hinata… If it’s okay with you, may I please remember your name?”

Hajime stared at the nurse strangely.

“O-Of course… You can remember it, but…” He trailed off uncertainly as Mikan went straight into her introduction.

“M-My name is Mikan Tsumiki… Um… From the bottom of my heart, I hope we can get along…” She anxiously smiled and blushed at the brunet, who was still unsure about the awkwardness between them.

“Right, I remember you’re the Ultimate Nurse… I… hope we can get along, too.” Hajime tried to sound as reassuring as possible, because he did want to befriend this girl – she just seemed very nervous, and he wasn’t sure what was up with that yet.

“Um… Um… Um, um, um, um, um… Uhhh…” The girl kept stuttering, tripping over her words. “My mind is drawing a blank from nervousness…! And… I went through the trouble of preparing 5,000 different topics to discuss after introductions!”

_‘That seems excessive…’_ Hajime couldn’t help thinking to himself.

“It’s okay if you take your time and remember slowly. We’ll wait as long as it takes!” Nagito said, smiling casually as ever. “We’ll wait for you forever if that’s what it takes!”

“Huh… Aaah!” The nurse cried out, caught off-guard by the luckster’s reply. Hajime just stared incredulously at them.

_‘Isn’t he… just piling more pressure on her?’_ He shook his head before turning to Nagito specifically. “Well, I guess I’ll just ask you since I won’t get anywhere asking her, so… What’s her deal?”

“Ah, Tsumiki is the **Ultimate Nurse**! If you ever get injured, you’ll need her help, so it’s best if you get along with her now. If you get wounded and don’t treat it, there’s a good possibility you’ll get an infection and die.” Nagito said, again, with an ever-present grin.

“Don’t say something so morbid so naturally…” Hajime grumbled. He looked to the nurse when she started giggling.

“Ah! I-I’m sorry for laughing so suddenly!” The nurse clasped her hands, begging forgiveness. “I-It’s just… I can’t help it. I’m just so happy. I can’t remember the last time I made any friends… Ah, not that you actually want to be friends with me! I’m sooo sorry I said something so… presumptuous! I’ll do anything you say… Just… Please don’t hate me…!”

… So insecure…

“Bullying a girl… Not cool, Hinata.”

Hajime deadpanned at the luckster again.

_‘Seriously, why does this keep happening?’_

“I’m sorry… I’m so, so, so sorry…!”

Hajime needed to politely excuse himself from all the awkwardness… He felt bad for Mikan, who he left crying, but with how that discussion was going, he might make things worse without meaning to… He’d definitely make it up to her when he got to know her later.

The next girl he encountered a few aisles over was the musician, from what he remembered… And after she repeated the same intro she had given in class, Ibuki went straight onto… other topics.

“All right, introductions are finished! Now check out this bombtastic supermarket! They’ve got hamburger, ramen noodles, chili beans, bratwurst, pasta… Oooh, melons!” Ibuki placed her hands on her hips and made that troll-like grin. “Americans, Chinese, Mexicans, Germans, Italians… and even people from Yubari would shop here! Man, I’m getting hellaaa stoooked! I’m thirty one flavors of stoked for all of this deliciousness~! And when I’m excited, I get hungry-mungry! I-I don’t understand it myself… Why do I get hungry when I’m excited? Why do I get excited when I’m hungry? Kyahaha, the human body sure is a mystery!”

… This wasn’t any less awkward, damnit! Mikan was a bundle of nerves, and Hajime felt bad for her, but this was the total opposite of what he ran away from… Ibuki was just all over the place with that high energy.

“Ah, this energetic young lady is the **Ultimate Musician** …” Nagito formally introduced her, not that he needed to, as he finally caught up to Hajime. “She used to play guitar in an all-girl band that was super popular with other high school girls. Apparently, their hit single, ‘After School Poyoyon Hour’, sold over a million copies.”

_‘A super popular, all-girl, high school band… That sounds familiar…’_ Hajime mused to himself as he tried to place the familiarity. He might’ve heard about her before…

Nagito continued on, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

“Due to creative differences, she left the band to pursue a solo career.”

“… Creative differences?” Hajime parroted, not sure what to make of that.

“Are you interested?!” Ibuki preened.

Hajime took a step back in shock.

“Wah! You could hear me?!”

“Duh! Ibuki is a musician, after all!” The girl giggled. “Like Schubert, Bach, Edison, Van Gogh, Perez, and Senna… I, too, am an awesome musician!”

Hajime frowned thoughtfully at that.

“Oh, so you’re saying that you have good hearing… Wait, most of those people you mentioned weren’t musicians at all!”

“Don’t sweat the details~!” Ibuki grinned cheekily. Hajime deadpanned at her.

… This girl. This girl…

~*~

“… A service shop?” Hajime found himself asking, scratching his head as he looked around the modestly-sized facility. There happened to be a couple lines of scooters positioned toward the front of the shop, all shiny and seemingly well-maintained… All in various colors and sizes, too. There was also tools and other equipment and objects sprawled across the shop, Hajime didn’t even know what half this stuff did or was for, but he could guess ‘who’ this facility was most likely prepared for…

“Usami did say this island was for all of us to get along!” Hajime’s travel companion remarked with that carefree grin of his. “As you can imagine, Souda was pretty excited when he found this place… He said this equipment was a bit ‘average’ for his liking, but he could make do with the supplies and make some incredible modifications when he got around to them~! I honestly thought we wouldn’t be able to tear him away from this place for quite some time…”

Hajime looked around the empty shop, confused.

“… So where **is** Souda?” It did seem like the place he’d be hanging out in. Nagito chuckled sheepishly.

“I imagine Yukizome-sensei tore him away for something important… After all, no one else would have been able to pry his ‘cold, dead fingers’ from this shop… to use his own words.” The luckster supplied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Still, don’t you think it’s rather amazing? Usami really has thought of everything. She explained the islands were rather enormous, so she even provided scooters for us to get around on, if we so chose…”

Hajime deadpanned at the luckster.

“I know we’re high schoolers, but how many of us actually have licenses to ride these…? And besides, I know Nidai, Akane, and maybe Ikusaba won’t care about them… But there’s still eighteen scooters here.” He gestured at the lines of scooters.

Nagito chuckled again, making Hajime twitch.

“Well, I won’t tell if you don’t~… And really, are you going to turn down the chance to get around faster when you find out how big this place is? This isn’t the only island, you know~…”

… Hajime hated when the luckster actually made **sense** for once… Wait.

“You said that before… A-Are you saying we’re on a chain of islands, and not just one…?”

Nagito crossed his arms and grinned.

“You’ll be seeing for yourself soon enough, but yeah. In addition to this one and the center island, there’s four other islands we don’t have access to yet… But Usami promises we’ll get to see them.”

Hajime absorbed this information and stored it away to reflect on later. His eyes panned over to the scooters speculatively.

… He might need one of these after all.

~*~

The next place they stopped by was the airport. And just like all the facilities they’d been in up until this point, it looked cleaned and well-maintained. There was even a baggage claim belt cycling around with random suitcases and other items on it.

“An airport, huh… So those must be…” Hajime looked out the main window in the back, where planes could be seen, parked on the runway. “Couldn’t we use those to escape this island…?”

Kazuichi came up to Hajime and Nagito, looking off to the side with a grin, his tongue hanging out a little.

“Nah, that’s impossible. If they were damaged, I could fix ‘em, but it looks like these planes are just for show…”

“Just for show…?” Hajime asked, flabbergasted.

Souda scratched his cheek and frowned thoughtfully.

“The engines have been completely removed. Nothing I can do about that.”

_‘Completely removed?!’_ Hajime thought to himself in frustration. _‘Whoever brought us to this island must have done that… right? The same person who’s controlling that stuffed animal, Usami. But… who is doing this? And why did they bring us to this island in the first place? And… how did they do it? The more I think about it… the less sense it makes.’_

“Oh yeah, you and me haven’t been introduced yet, right?” The mechanic shook Hajime’s hand with a strong grip. “Name’s Kazuichi Souda!”

Hajime ran a hand through his hair and smiled.

“Yeah, I remember from the intros earlier… You’re the Ultimate Mechanic, right?”

“The one and only!” Souda gave a toothy grin and a thumbs-up.

“As expected from someone called the **Ultimate Mechanic** , Souda is a savant when it comes to fixing machines.” Nagito piped up cheerily. “If he says it’s impossible to fix this plane, it’s truly beyond repair.”

Souda scowled as he scratched his cheek again, bitterly.

“Even so… to actually remove the engine, whoever’s keeping us here must’ve planned this to a T.”

“You think so, too, huh? Doesn’t that seem pretty strange to you?” Hajime asked with a frown. Souda just rubbed the back of his head nervously.

“Yeah, it’s pretty strange, but I think it’s an acceptable level of strange, y’know?”

“… Huh?” Hajime blinked owlishly.

“Well, think about it… It’s not like we’re being forced to do something dangerous or anything… That was mentioned in the safety precautions for this school trip.” Kazuichi explained, citing the first rule again, but also the other rules – where they were supposed to get along with each other, with nature, and the teacher was not allowed to interfere with the students unless they broke the rules. Those were the simple rules established for them. “It looks like we’re being kept safe, so why wouldn’t this be like any other school trip?”

Nagito nodded slowly, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

“There’s nothing dangerous on this island… Spend these peaceful and relaxing days nourishing hope… Just as Usami said earlier. It seems these rules are in place to help us do that…”

Hajime stared incredulously at the luckster again.

“Are you saying you believe what that thing told us?! She forced us to come here, you know!”

“Don’t be such a pessimist… You should look at this situation with a bit more hope, you know? Optimism is essential for people to live satisfied lives.”

Kazuichi nodded before flashing another thumbs-up.

“Well, I guess it’s okay if we just enjoy our vacation and see how this whole thing plays out, right?” He rested both arms behind his head casually, grinning. “Hehe! If you stare closely at that strange-lookin’ bunny girl, she might start lookin’ pretty cute!”

_‘… I’m actually jealous of how carefree he’s being right now.’_

Nagito rubbed his chin again thoughtfully.

“Hey, Souda? Where’s Yukizome-sensei? I thought she’d be with you since you obviously got dragged out of the service shop…”

The mechanic pulled his beanie hat over his head nervously.

“That chick’s scary as hell! She literally dragged me, y’know?!” Kazuichi sighed miserably. “You just missed her, actually. She was disappointed about the missing engines, so she was gonna go check out the central island since she hadn’t yet… Glad she’s gone. Now I can go back to tinkering in peace!”

Nagito chuckled at the mechanic’s expense. Hajime just stared at him pitifully.

~*~

The only other place Hajime hadn’t yet seen on the first island was the zoo… But as soon as he and Nagito set foot past the gate, they were accosted by the Ultimate Breeder.

“Stop right there. If you value your life, do not come any closer.”

“H-Huh…?” Hajime stared at the breeder incredulously. The scarfed teen simply crossed his arms and scowled lightly.

“Hmph, I said stay back! Oh, very well… I shall accept that courage of yours.”

_‘What is this guy talking about…?’_ Hajime thought to himself nervously.

“Kehehe, would you like to know my name? Others may see your courage as recklessness… However, I welcome it.” The scarfed teen cackled, raising a bandaged arm eccentrically. “In honor of your courage, I shall reveal to you my name. May you never forget it as long as you live!”

Hajime had to stop him there.

“N-No, no… I-I know who you are. You introduced yourself already in class, remember? You’re… Gundham Tanaka. The Ultimate Breeder”

Tanaka reeled back a little, showing evident shock.

“To speak my name so casually… Me, who shall one day rule over this world… Are you a deity in the guise of a mere human?!”

_‘R-Rule this world… He’s kidding, right? If he’s actually serious, that’s pretty out there!’_ Hajime shook his head with a very lost expression. “N-No, no… I’m human, just like you…”

“And so presumptuous, too…” Tanaka scoffed, crossing his arms before looking off the side and burying the lower half of his face in his scarf. “Let me ask you a question. Whose master are you?”

“Eh…?” Hajime muttered.

“Which tribe did you make your pact with? Answer me!” Tanaka barked out authoritatively.

“Uh… What do you mean by ‘pact’…?” Hajime was still very lost.

“Answer me now!” Tanaka demanded heatedly, gripping his scarf a little to pull it down so his mouth was visible. “Though I shall cast you into a watery grave once you do!”

“Then it’s best if I don’t answer!” Hajime was quickly becoming more and more panicked.

“I think he’s asking if you used to have a pet…” Nagito sheepishly chuckled, raising his hands again peacefully.

Hajime stared at the luckster, utterly mystified.

“… A pet? No… The only animal I’ve taken care of was a hermit crab we used to pass around in elementary school…”

Tanaka gazed at the brunet, totally floored once more.

“So, a mere insect?! Your Magic Essence caps at a lowly five! Trash!”

“T-Trash? Really…?” Hajime couldn’t say he enjoyed where this discussion was heading.

“Hmph! Is it wrong to call trash ‘trash’? Trash like you should not dare to speak to one so grand as me!” As he spoke, four hamsters emerged from his uniform, looking pretty happy. “Who do you think I am? I am the great and powerful Gundham Tanaka, **Supreme Overlord of Ice**!”

Hajime pointed a finger incredulously.

“H-Hold on…! Something strange just came out of your scarf!”

Tanaka crossed his arms as his hamsters rested on his shoulders and on his elbow.

“Taming evil by using myself as a bed… Truly, this is the secret art of the **Tanaka Empire**!”

Despite how weirded out Hajime was, Nagito laughed anyway.

“It’s like something you might see on a nature show. I guess he totally fits the bill of **Ultimate Breeder**.”

Tanaka chuckled darkly to himself.

“One of my Four Dark Devas of Destruction, **Mirage Golden Hawk** Jum-P, has this to say! ‘We’re not used to going easy on our enemies… so don’t make us angry. You wouldn’t like us when we’re angry.’ Fuhahahahahahaha!”

Hajime just stared. He stared, and stared, and stared some more. Ibuki was weird, but at least she was easily understood – she was just very hyper, low attention span. Gundham, on the other hand… was another kettle of fish entirely.

“Um, yeah… I know he seems a bit odd, but apparently he did splendidly as a member of the Breeding Club.” Nagito supplied more info for Hajime. “I’ve heard he can tame any animal and even managed to succeed at proliferating an endangered species. Rumor has it he can speak to animals… Well, that’s probably just a joke.”

_‘Speak with animals…? Well, he’s certainly eccentric enough in that regard.’_ Hajime thought to himself, still trying to come to grips with the man’s eccentricities. _‘I mean, no normal person would attempt to raise hamsters inside their own scarf…’_

“So, uh… Can we check out the zoo, Tanaka?” Hajime asked out loud. He suspected he knew the answer already, but…

“Hah! Trash like you wishes to gaze upon great and terrible beasts that would sooner tear you asunder or rip you limb from limb?! You are a foolhardy soul indeed, Hajime Hinata… Kehehe… Alas, I must forbid you entry… for now. If I were to allow you to get any closer without first cataloguing the denizens of Tartarus, why, the very fabric of this reality would collapse from your naïve, yet brave endeavors! Restrain that **curiosity** , for I shall attend to it all in due time!”

… Worth a shot.

~*~

The last place to check for the time being was the central island. Like Komaeda had said, the other islands were closed off by thick iron gates, but the rest of central island was accessible. Not that there was much on it… Just some rocky formations, trees, and a park in the middle of it with a bronze statue.

Mukuro had finally caught up to them, and surprisingly, she looked no worse for the wear. Hajime just had to ask…

“Were… Were you fighting with Nidai this whole time?” Even though the brunet suspected he knew the answer, he tried to reassure himself that there was other possible explanations.

After all… Mukuro wasn’t scarred, bruised, or winded **at all**.

“Yes.” Mukuro answered without hesitation. Hajime sweatdropped.

“You, uh… Did you take a bit to catch your breath, maybe…?” Did she win after all???

Mukuro tilted her head at the brunet.

“No, not really… I hurried to catch up to you guys after Nidai let me go. We sparred the whole time, and he won, like I thought he would… Said he didn’t have much to critique, either. Owari tried to challenge me next, but I ran…” The soldier obliviously gave her report, unaware to the panic and dawning horror arising in Hajime, the more she spoke.

_‘… Is… Is the dojo still in one piece?’_ Hajime dared not ask that question out loud. Instead, he said, “D-Did Nidai check his blows…?”

“He didn’t hold back that much against me. I didn’t give him much choice, since he told **me** to go all-out.” Mukuro flatly intoned.

Hajime stared at the soldier, feeling well and truly frightened to be near her. Nekomaru was **huge**! And the way he fought was crazy! How did someone fight **that** and look so pristine and unconcerned?!

He turned to Nagito, who just chuckled warmly at the soldier’s account of what she’d been up to.

“Wonderful~! Truly splendid! As expected of the **Ultimate Soldier** … Shall we proceed to the park…?”

Hajime opened and closed his mouth like a fish on dry land. Mukuro just fell into line behind Nagito without missing a beat.

“Did your luck act up at all…?” Mukuro asked the luckster, her face etched with what appeared to be light concern.

Nagito chuckled, raising his hands in a ‘what can you do?’ gesture.

“Not yet, so I’m sure something **really** unlucky is on its way~… That’s just how it goes, you know? But once it happens, we can look forward to the blessings that come after~!”

Hajime stared at their backs as he followed the nonchalant duo, Mukuro nodding like Nagito hadn’t said anything suspicious at all. What did he get himself into?! Out of everyone he met so far today, these two probably worried him the most!

And that was saying something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more student to meet and Yukizome-sensei~... Truth to tell, I wanted to make this Prologue a two-parter, but there is a LOT more to get to than I was expecting. New features, a bunch of familiar faces... This is setting up to be a really fun, heart-throbbing trip. :3 
> 
> Do I feel bad about giving these kids access to scooters? Not at all~
> 
> Do I feel regret in spoiling Tanaka with a mysterious zoo? We're all in this slip 'n slide into madness together~ Zoos are fun places. :3 
> 
> Muku is a feisty Cinnabun, and we must protect her at all costs~
> 
> Do I feel guilty about what's coming? ... Guilt? What guilt? :3 We wrap up intros and get into sexy beach time in the next part~ The sky's nice and clear, though there miiiiight be some clouds off on the horizon.... But who cares about those? :3 :3 :3


	3. Prologue, Part 3

“A park surrounded by the ocean… Hmm, it feels so nice!” Nagito sighed contentedly as the three of them arrived at the park.

_‘Such a laidback attitude…’_ Hajime thought to himself, still not understanding the carefree attitude. _‘But… if we weren’t in a situation like this, I’d probably be enjoying some lazy sunbathing myself… ‘If’ being the key word.’_

Looking around the park, aside from its nice view, there wasn’t really that much to see. The bronze statue of five animals together seemed… strange, but there was also two other people in the park. Yukizome-sensei and the only remaining student Hajime had yet to meet. They seemed to be in a bit of a hushed conversation as Hajime approached them. One that seemed to stop immediately once Hajime was close enough.

“… What do you want?” Byakuya asked, arms folded as he looked to the side disinterestedly.

_‘Th-This guy’s presence is overwhelming. He doesn’t seem very approachable…’_ Hajime thought, feeling pretty small and unimportant. _‘Even his body is overwhelming…’_

“Hey, Togami.” Mukuro greeted a little ways away from Hajime as she stood over by Nagito. “You have time for one more intro?”

Taking that as his cue, Hajime waved lamely and smiled nervously at the scion’s piercing stare.

“H-Hey… My name’s Hajime Hinata. Nice to meet you!”

“Byakuya Togami…” The heir returned the courtesy before turning his nose up at the brunet. “… I’m done. That’s it, right? Back off.”

_‘I-I can tell… this guy’s thumbing his nose at me…’_ Hajime inwardly sighed.

“Well, I suppose that’s Togami for you…” Komaeda rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “That guy is particularly **special** , even by Ultimate standards… He’s next in line to inherit his family’s massive financial conglomerate. He’s already begun managing the business operations, and his net worth is, well, enormous. It’s completely natural to call him the **Ultimate Scion**. He’s the epitome of ‘exceptional’!”

_‘That’s like… a manga origin story…’_ Hajime couldn’t help thinking.

The heir turned his attention back to the brunet.

“You there, Hinata was it…?”

“Eh?” Hajime cocked his head in slight concern.

“Tell me… why did Hope’s Peak Academy choose you…? What is your Ultimate talent?” Togami asked, raising his chin a little.

Hajime deflated as he was asked that again.

“I-I still can’t remember… I’m sorry. I wish I knew that, myself.”

Togami scoffed.

“Hmph, how foolish.” He looked to the side arrogantly again. “We’re done talking. How much longer do you intend to stand there? Move along! That’s the only thing you skinny types are good at, it seems.”

_‘His build and that overwhelming aura of refinement just pushes people away…’_ Hajime couldn’t stop himself from thinking. _‘Is that what it means to be the Ultimate Scion…?’_

“Now, now, Togami-kun~… Don’t you think that’s a little rude?” Yukizome asked, tucking that notepad she’d been writing on away with a closed-eyed grin. “Just because Hinata-kun doesn’t have the answers you want yet, doesn’t mean spending time with him is wasteful!”

“I have better things to do with my time…” The heir huffed. “Don’t **you** find yourself in that same predicament? **You’ve** been searching for a means of escape or communication since we were brought here, harder than the rest of these plebeians.”

Chisa swayed back and forth merrily.

“Even if that’s true, that’s no reason for the cold shoulder! You’re **classmates**!” The teacher clapped her hands together and her eyes sparkled before she placed those hands on Hajime’s shoulders, looking him over for any injuries. “Now, how are you feeling? That was a pretty rough fall you had when you collapsed. I’m glad you’re up and about, but you shouldn’t strain yourself! I was all too happy to check on you, if you needed anything.”

And she had been checking up on him. Despite exploring the islands like the rest of her students, she had made occasional trips to the beach to make sure no one was picking on Hajime while he was unconscious… Other teachers might have moved him to his cabin, but Yukizome was under the belief that he’d be fine! There was a charm to having the same starting point as the rest of them, you know? Hajime was just a little dazed from all the sudden and… slightly alarming… goings-on, and who could blame him?

Being cut off from Kyosuke-kun had certainly made her more stressed than she had felt in years… She’d panicked for well over fifteen minutes, trying to find **any** way to reach him… She liked to think she had acclimatized to this… very unwelcome… turn of events.

They did have a plan to reform Hope’s Peak, and this random trip put a serious damper on her investigation. She hoped Juzo-kun was having better luck… because she was dead in the water ‘til she got access to a phone.

And a boat home…

Hajime chuckled self depreciatingly as he waved off the teacher’s concern.

“I’m fine! If I left everything to you guys, I’d feel like dead weight. Besides, I was gonna meet everyone at some point, right? Might as well get to that sooner than later. Wh-What about yourself…? You seem a bit… frantic.” He couldn’t help noting. It wasn’t anything wrong – he knew exactly how suspicious this all was – just… painfully obvious, the more he looked at her chirpy expression, those eyes darting about aimlessly.

Chisa patted her cheeks eccentrically and gave another closed-eyed grin.

“Oh, I’m fine~… Nothing for you kids to worry yourselves over! We’re on a nice, tropical island…” Trapped… No communication… “We’re spoiled with a grand hotel, a zoo, supermarket, dojo…” All of them suspiciously well-stocked, equipped, and tidy despite this being an uninhabited island… “And the purpose is for everyone to get along! Absolutely nothing to worry over~!”

… And once she could contact Kyosuke-kun, she might actually believe those words herself. Usami probably did mean well… But as things stood, Chisa had to assume the worst, that the Steering Committee or Headmaster Kirigiri had caught onto her role and Kyosuke-kun’s plans, and sent her out here to hide anything they didn’t want her to dig up… She couldn’t afford to relax like the kids.

But that didn’t mean they should panic and stress like her… After all, Usami was genuine with that caring attitude and earnest desire to strengthen the students’ bonds with each other. There was nothing dangerous about any of the facilities they’d witnessed thus far, the kids weren’t targets in this madness, they couldn’t be. Yukizome could empathize all too well – camaraderie was what high school was all about.

… She just wished she could shake the feeling Hope’s Peak was isolating her because of Kyosuke-kun’s plans. It couldn’t just be paranoia on her part.

“Ding dong, bing bong!” A bell chime rang out throughout the park, and the five of them turned their attention to the sole monitor, which flickered on. Usami was displayed on the screen, appearing pleased. “Congratulations, everyone! It appears everyone has finished collecting the **Hope Fragments**! I'm..’ *sniff*… I’m so happy… Sooo… I’ve prepared a present for everyone that’ll make you all veeery happy! I apologize for the trouble, but please gather at the beach! Teeheehee! May shining hope be with you all!”

The screen flickered off. Obviously, Hajime felt as uneasy and suspicious of the rabbit’s intentions as ever. But… it’s not like they had a choice in going.

Yukizome-sensei could be very persuasive… Souda wasn’t kidding about the whole ‘dragging’ comment. Hajime found that out firsthand.

~*~

Once they were all gathered together, it was Togami who started talking, rather than Yukizome-sensei.

“With that rabbit thing not here yet, I’d like to hear your initial impressions of this island.”

Peko was the first to answer him.

“I happened to notice numerous blocked off bridges on the central island.”

Ibuki raised her hand enthusiastically.

“Oh! Those are there so everybody doesn’t get lost! I tried to cross one of them and that rabbit showed up and told me, so I’m telling the truth!”

“So that we don’t get lost…?” Peko echoed uncertainly. “Is this island really so big?”

Souda’s arms rested behind his head again as he flashed a toothy grin and chuckled.

“But if you look at it in-depth, it’s just a normal island, right? It’s got a resort and everything! Well, not that I’ve ever been to a resort before, but…”

“Also, there’s a biiig ranch!” Saionji butted in, tapping her chin.

Nidai bellowed with excitement.

“There is also a… DOOOJOOO!!!!!”

Akane grinned, hand on her hip.

“Man, that thing can take a walloping… I’m definitely gonna be in there all day, every day~…”

Mikan’s fingers poked together nervously.

“Um… There’s also a large supermarket, too… It looks like it stocks everything from food to living amenities.”

“The hotel was really nice, too. It’d be great if we can stay there.” Mahiru smiled fondly.

“The restaurant inside the hotel was also very nice. It seemed to cater to a more plebeian taste.”

“Can you guys listen to what I want to say, too?” Teruteru piped up, quivering with excitement. “I… found something very important on this island. Girls! Very, very cute girls! Aha! All over the place~!”

Ibuki grimaced eccentrically.

“GROOOSS! I’m getting goosebumps!”

Souda grinned excitedly and seemed to vibrate as his fists were pumped.

“There’s a service shop~! All you guys are gonna have some seriously kickass rides when I’m through with upgrading them! Those babies are gonna reach, like, 575 mph **at least**!”

Yukizome swayed back and forth whimsically.

“Now, Souda-kun… Do you remember what we talked about ‘safety’…?” The beaming smile was kind, but Hajime could detect something ominous lurking behind it as she hummed happily.

The words did the trick, though, as Kazuichi tugged his beanie over his eyes in terror.

“I-I-I got it, Sensei…!” He moaned pitifully.

This didn’t seem to satisfy the orange-haired teacher.

“So how fast will those scooters go…?”

“… No faster than 30 mph…” The mechanic grumbled, beanie still over his eyes.

“And the other enhancements~…?” Yukizome prompted further.

“No weapons or anything **dangerous** …” He moaned.

The teacher clapped her hands gleefully.

“Much better~!”

… Hajime was going to just leave those two alone for a while…

Tanaka cackled gleefully, arms crossed.

“A portal to Hell exists on this plane of existence! I have discovered many fearsome members of Tartarus lurk there, and have awaited my arrival! Soon, we shall rule over this world~…!”

Saionji groaned loudly.

“You’re so **weird**! You won’t let **anyone** into that zoo!” She grumbled. Tanaka studiously ignored her, as she was not the first to voice such a complaint.

Togami huffed in exasperation.

“All of you are fools… I can’t believe nobody has mentioned the **most serious truth**.”

“… The most serious truth?” Chiaki tilted her head curiously.

“If no one here noticed it, you’re all bigger fools than I thought.” Togami scoffed.

Fuyuhiko clenched a fist furiously as he gritted his teeth.

“What’d you say, you fat bastard? Don’t be talkin’ all big and shit!”

“Small dogs shouldn’t bark so loud…” Togami snapped back condescendingly.

Hajime frowned as he pressed the heir for more information.

“Hey, what’s this most serious truth? Did… did you find out something about this island…?”

Togami crossed his arms and looked off to the side.

“Have you all gone to the park that’s across the bridge?”

“The park with that bronze statue of all the creepy animals on it, right?” Hajime asked for clarification.

Togami raised a pointer finger astutely.

“When I saw it, I remembered a story I’d heard before. There’s an island in the Pacific Ocean, a beautiful island paradise where summer never ends… It consists of a central island surrounded by **five different islands** … It’s also said that **five holy animals** symbolize each of those surrounding islands. That island’s name is… **Jabberwock Island**.”

Nagito’s eyes widened in realization.

“Could this island be…?”

“Jabberwock Island? Could that be the name of this island?” Hajime also wondered. Togami merely shrugged.

“Still, there is something on my mind. In fact, according to what I’ve heard, Jabberwock Island is already…” The heir trailed off before crossing his arms with a huff. “… Never mind.”

“Hold it right there! That’s a rather incomplete story you’ve told us.” Nidai spoke for everyone, hands on his hips sternly.

“No need to shout. I’ll let you know once I obtain more information.” Togami snorted derisively.

Akane picked at her ear in disinterest.

“Meh, I don’t care what this island’s called. Nikoniko Island or Papua Island or whatever… Doesn’t change the fact we’ve all gotta live here, right?”

Ibuki pranced around giddily.

“Living together on this tropical island sure is exciiiting! I’m super looking forward to it~!”

“Right on! This ain’t a bad school at all!” Souda agreed wholeheartedly, flashing a thumb’s-up and a toothy grin.

“H-Hey…? You guys?” Hajime looked around, not liking where this was going with the overall attitudes.

“Hmm, I like this island, too!” Hiyoko agreed with a bright grin. “… Can’t say the same about the rest of you cretins.”

“Huh? Did I hear something?” Teruteru combed his hair nervously.

“I’m still worried, but I don’t feel as worried as I did earlier…” Mahiru confessed. She grinned easily. “Yeah, since there’s no danger or inconvenience, I feel like this won’t be a problem!”

Hajime gestured frantically.

“Hey, listen to what you guys are saying! We need to stay calm and think about this…! We’re all here to attend Hope’s Peak Academy, right? But we’re living on an island like this instead… No matter what, it’s completely weird!”

Tanaka crossed his arms, scowling.

“Why don’t you stop talking for a while? Go cool your head off or something.”

“E-Eh…?” Hajime reeled back in shock.

“P-Plus, even if we wanted to leave, there’s no way we can…” Teruteru pointed out.

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

“There’s no ship, and the planes are just for show…”

“From what I’ve discovered, there’s no way to contact the outside world, either…” Peko murmured. “In conclusion… It would be impossible to call for help.”

“Then, why don’t we just swim home?” Akane suggested not too brightly.

“There’s no way we can swim that far…!” Mikan wailed.

“SHOW SOME SPIRIT!!!” Nidai roared passionately. Mahiru huffed and placed her hands on her hips, scowling.

“I’m telling you, that’s impossible!”

“Th-Then… what if we cut down some trees and made a raft…?” Hajime suggested.

… And that’s when the bunny popped up again.

“Nuh-uh! You can’t do that! That’s the biggest of the no-no’s! Please recall the guidelines of this school trip! ‘ **Littering is not allowed**. **Let us coexist with this island’s beautiful nature in mutual prosperity**.’ Got it? I want everyone to get along and live peacefully on this beautiful tropical island.”

“Wh-What’s with these rules? Who cares about that…!” Hajime cried out.

“Stop.” Togami barked, shooting the brunet a stern glare. “This rabbit seems to be rather finicky about these so-called rules… Based on that, what if your actions place everyone here in danger?”

Usami waved her paws in the air frightfully.

“Th-The word ‘danger’ is a bit much! I wouldn’t do something like that!”

“Hinata… I understand how you feel, but you need to calm down a little, okay?” Nagito tried placating the brunet.

“F-For now… as long as we don’t do anything weird, it seems there is no danger…” Mikan nervously agreed.

“And as long as we gather the **Hope Fragments** , we’ll be able to get off this island soon.” Chiaki piped up.

“Y-You’re all just gonna believe that…?” Hajime balked.

“There’s no other choice but to believe… for now.” Mukuro pointed out. “Until we have evidence to the contrary, you probably don’t have anything to worry about…”

“P-Probably…?” Hajime shakily echoed, to which the soldier shrugged.

“There’s always a degree of uncertainty. It’s good to be aware and responsive… But if you walk anywhere all tense and jumping at every shadow, you won’t be able to detect the real threats.”

Hajime deflated as she brought that up… She… She had a point… But still…!

“Anyway, Usami~!” Ibuki moved on. “What’s this **present** you mentioned in your announcement earlier?”

Usami threw her paws up in surprise again.

“Ah, that’s right! Well, of course I didn’t forget… Love, love~ This is it!” Usami presented a miniature version of herself to all of them, little squeezable dolls that came with automated phrases. “Don’t be upset! I’ve prepared one for you all, so don’t worry~!”

Nagito stared at the ‘present’.

“… What is this?”

“Pfft, teehee~! It’s an Usami Strap! If you squeeze the tummy, it talks! Isn’t it cute? Love, love~!”

Togami huffed in impatience.

“… What a waste of time.”

Ibuki rubbed the back of her head disappointedly.

“Man, and I got my hopes up, too…”

“I’m ashamed I even had my hopes up!” Teruteru wailed.

Chiaki tilted her head.

“Really? I think it’s pretty cute. Especially how the ears look like a rabbit’s…”

“Well, Usami does mean ‘rabbit’, you know!” Usami explained. Regardless, a number of Usami Straps ended up on the beach anyway… After everyone received their strap, they tossed them on the beach. “Hey! You can’t taint nature with trash!”

“See? Even you think they’re trash!” Ibuki accused.

Usami miserably picked up the straps and looked at them all with a lonely expression.

“Ugh… And I even prepared one more present, too, but now I don’t wanna give it to you bad kids…”

“Hm? You have something else?” Peko asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, compared to the Usami Strap, it’s not that big of a deal…” Usami explained before presenting the next gift. “Basically, I’ve prepared a **motive** for everyone.”

“A motive…?” Hajime echoed, still having a bad feeling about all this.

Usami giggled spreading out her arms warmly.

“That’s right. A **motive** for everyone to get along. We’ve come all this way to a tropical island, so I thought that it’d be great to do something island themed…”

Akane grinned, hand on her hip.

“Like what? Are you thinkin’ of throwin’ a big party or somethin’?”

“Cooorrect!” Usami confirmed, throwing her paws up excitedly.

“Is it a festival? Or maybe a miniature shrine? How wonderful!” Sonia gushed.

Teruteru grinned lecherously.

“Excuse me, Miss Sonia… My loins are still full of poison, and I would appreciate it if you could suck it out with your mouth…”

“Knock it off, Teruteru!” Nagito reproached the perverted chef.

“Oh, your tenderloins? You betcha!” Sonia pumped her arm excitedly, which had Nagito trying to hold her back more.

“Just ignore him, Sonia!”

“If we’re talking about fun parties on a tropical island, maybe it should be a barbeque or something?” Ibuki suggested brightly.

“Ah, a campfire sounds fun, too.” Mahiru agreed sagely.

“Let’s find a hoop snake and kill it~!” Hiyoko cheered boisterously.

“Is looking for one not enough for you?!” Kazuichi cried out in panic.

“It seems everyone has different ideas, but if we’re gonna be at the ocean, then first…” Usami brought out the next gift, small blue and red bags. “Tadaaa! This is what it’s all about~!”

“A swimming bag?” Nagito asked with a tilt of the head.

“Cooorrect! Love, love~!” Usami confirmed happily.

“Whoooaaa! Then that means…!” Kazuichi cried out excitedly.

“That’s right. I have swimsuits for everyone. Well, school swimsuits, actually. I hope that’s okay.” Usami helpfully explained.

Hajime stared at the rabbit, feeling nervous.

“A-Are you telling us to go swimming? In a situation like this…?”

“It’s not like I’m ordering you guys to swim or anything.” Usami shuffled her feet bashfully. “It’s just, if you wanna go swimming, you can…”

“Th-There’s no way I’m going swimming!” Hajime yelled. “There’s no way anyone would be so thoughtless to go swimming in a situation like this…”

“YAAAHOOOOOO!” Ibuki cheered, already running off with her swimming bag.

“E-Eh…?” Hajime trailed off uncertainly. Kazuichi rested his arms behind his head, grinning toothily in a relaxed manner.

“Aw, yeah! That’s what I’m talking about! With weather this nice, there’s no way I’m gonna pass up on swimming!”

Teruteru chuckled suggestively.

“I agree~! Even my loins agree! You see?”

“Your tenderloins? I understand!” Sonia pumped her arm excitedly again. Nagito held up his hands yet again.

“S-Seriously, don’t try to understand!”

“How long has it been since I last swam in the sea…?” Mahiru wondered to herself.

“ALLLLLL RIIIIIIGHT! LET’S GO CHANGE!!!!!” Nidai roared passionately, cracking his knuckles.

Those who were excited to go swimming hurried to grab swimming bags from Usami, and then rushed off to the hotel to go change. Nagito approached Hajime, clutching a swimming bag of his own – and Mukuro was a step behind him, also with a swimming bag in hand.

“What are you going to do, Hinata? I understand how you feel, and I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do… But if you feel up for it, I’d be happy if you came along, too.”

Hajime just stared as the luckster and soldier ran off to the hotel together, the latter seeming more like an escort or like a doting older sister. The brunet’s shoulders sagged as it set in that he was being left behind, even though it was something he was wary about doing.

_‘There is no danger…’_ Hajime thought to himself, feeling hollow on th inside. _‘There is nothing tragic waiting to happen on this island… Is that really true? If so… Am I… actually wrong?’_

“Hmph…” Togami snorted, crossing his arms.

Hajime saw a few of them were remaining on the beach like him. He turned to Saionji curiously.

“You’re not going to swim?”

“Nah, it’s more fun to step on the crabs walking on the beach!” The blonde answered with a little too much glee. Hajime shivered.

“I-I see…” The brunet edged away from the sadistic dancer and moved over to the heir. “You’re not gonna swim, Togami?”

“Of course not.” Togami sneered. “However, don’t think that makes us friends or anything. Our reasons couldn’t be more different.”

“Different reasons?” Hajime cocked his head in confusion.

Togami smirked.

“You cannot accept our situation because you’re nothing but a coward, right?”

“C-Coward…?!” Hajime balked in outrage.

“That Usami thing is not lying to us…” Togami spoke with such certainty. “You’re starting to realize that, aren’t you?”

“Th-Then… why aren’t you going to go swim?” The brunet asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I simply don’t like ocean water. It’s too salty.” The heir derisively snorted.

_‘That’s not something to boast about… Little kids say the same thing when they don’t want to swim.’_ Hajime deadpanned in his head. He turned to the gamer next, who was blearily rubbing at her eyes. “You’re not gonna swim?”

“Mm, I’m like really, really sleepy right now…” Chiaki replied tiredly.

“I-I see… It’d be a problem if you fell asleep while you were swimming.” Hajime agreed, smiling sympathetically at the gamer.

“I’d probably drown…” She mused.

“More like definitely drown…” He shook his head with a wry smile. _‘But to be sleepy in a situation like this… She’s sure got some bold nerves…’_

Aside from Hiyoko, Byakuya, and Chiaki, there were a couple of others still around – Fuyuhiko and Chisa. Hajime didn’t need to approach the yakuza heir to know he wasn’t going to join in on the fun and games, because that would mean getting buddy-buddy with everyone… Which was the opposite of what Fuyuhiko wanted.

Yukizome-sensei, however…

“You’re not joining in, Sensei?” Hajime asked with a raised eyebrow. The orange-haired woman simply clasped her hands behind her back and beamed sunnily.

“A teacher has an obligation to watch over her students~…” The woman hummed happily. “I’m not leaving any rotten oranges on the beach alone… No one should be alone, not even you, Hinata-kun!”

“R-Rotten oranges…?” Hajime stammered, not really sure what to make of that comment. At that point Usami spoke up again.

“Ah! Speaking of which, everyone has returned!”

Hearing that, Hajime turned around, and he saw a bunch of people in swimsuits jumping in the ocean and shouting in joy. Girls like Mahiru, Sonia, Peko, Ibuki, and Mukuro fit into their swimsuits just fine – girls like Mikan and Akane, though… Well. *coughs* Hajime couldn’t help noticing how… shapely… they were…

… Why did Mikan’s swimsuit bunch up in the back like that?

Nidai had a similar problem with his big, muscular body. The other guys – Kazuichi, Gundham, Nagito, and Teruteru fit into their swimsuits better.

The ones who opted to swim further out in the ocean were Ibuki, Peko, Akane, and Kazuichi. Sonia was overjoyed simply dipping her toes in the salty water. Mahiru, Mikan, and Nagito were content to swim closer to the beach, while Mukuro, Teruteru, and Nekomaru watched. Gundham stayed on the beach, building a sandcastle.

“YAAAHOOOOOO!” Kazuichi crowed out in delight.

“Yaaay, the sea!” Mikan cheered.

“Aaah, the water is so cool. It feels great!” Sonia gushed.

“Wah! Too salty! This water’s too salty! It’s not going easy on me!” Ibuki whined, but continued swimming anyway.

“Heeey~!” Teruteru called out suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows. “I’ve got some suntan lotion from the supermarket! Would anyone like a rubdown…?”

Nidai’s eyebrows rose in intrigue as he nodded sagely.

“Oh! You’re quite considerate! Now then, will you apply it right away?”

Teruteru blinked owlishly.

“Eh? Rubbing lotion on a muscular man…? All right, no problem! My tastes are pretty open, y’know!”

“You seem a little **too** open…” Mahiru chastised the perverted chef. “Like you’re covering too many bases by yourself!”

“Mmhmhmhm…” Teruteru giggled perversely. “I’ll make sure to slather you with lots and **lots** of oil~…”

“Wh-What is this feeling of intense bloodlust?!” Nidai exclaimed.

Though she didn’t say anything, Mukuro was keeping an eye on Nagito as he swam. Hajime felt compelled to ask what made her so… protective of the luckster, but he didn’t want to seem rude or intrusive. It just seemed a little weird…

_‘It feels like a resort… There’s no other way to describe it…’_ Hajime thought to himself, feeling a bit numb seeing everyone have so much fun out there. _‘Seeing the other students having all this fun… I… I…’_

Usami giggled happily.

“Yep, yep~! I’m very happy… Everyone seems to be getting along with each other, so I’m very happy! I thought this would be hard until everyone got used to this, but they’re all acting like Ultimates! Let’s keep up the pace and all do our best to peacefully enjoy this **heart-throbbing school trip**!” Usami pumped her paw in the air with determination.

Hajime just continued staring at everyone out there.

_‘… What’s this feeling of alienation? I can’t really put it into words… Am I really… wrong about all this?’_ He took a deep, patient breath. “… Fine. I just gotta do it, right? Then… I’ll do it! That’s right, I’ll do it!”

“Hinata-kun…?” Chisa tilted her head curiously, though a small grin was tugging at her lips.

“Did something happen?” Usami asked with slight concern, but Hajime brushed that aside.

“Hey, hand me one of those swimsuits!” Inwardly, Hajime couldn’t help but laugh at himself. _‘Jeez! I can’t believe I was the only one worrying! I feel like an idiot! I don’t care anymore! I’m gonna go for it! I’m gonna seriously enjoy myself and have fun!’_

“Heeey, you guys! Don’t forget about me! Hey, hey! Wait for me! Let me join in on the fun!” Hajime was about to rush off and go change… but that was when something ominous occurred. The sky darkened, becoming overcast with gray clouds, and the ocean waves became just a little more rough… “… Huh? What’s happening…? These strange clouds… This doesn’t seem natural at all…!’ 

“Eh? Huh…?” Usami seemed just as perturbed as the rest of them. Hajime whirled on her suspiciously.

“Hey, what’s going on? What did you do?! This is obviously not right! It was sunny just a few minutes ago!”

“Wha… Wha-wha-wha… Wh-What is this?!” Usami cried out in distress.

“… Huh?” Hajime was caught off-guard. Was this… really not her fault…?

“I didn’t do anything!” Usami confirmed the brunet’s doubts. “What is all this…? There’s no way! Something like this shouldn’t be happening!”

And at that exact moment… Just when it seemed like this couldn’t get any more confusing, **it** suddenly happened. The screen on the palm tree flickered on, and a hazy, static-filled image of… what seemed like a teddy bear of some sort… appeared.

“Ahh! Mic check, mic check! Ah… Can you hear me, can you hear me?” The voice was so laidback and gleeful that it seemed out of place… But it was different from Usami’s. It was as if a storm of malice was raging behind that laidback tone. That voice caused a great many of them to shudder in dread. “Upupu… Surprised? You were totally surprised~! Riiight~? Now then, sorry to keep you all waiting for so long. Let’s leave all this worthless entertainment behind us… It’s time for the main attraction! You guys better hustle over to Jabberwock Park!”

The screen flickered off, leaving the students very numb and fearful. Chisa frowned in concern, eyes falling over her students, aching to hold each of them close so nothing would happen to them…

“Th-This voice… Could it be…?” Usami whispered in dread. “I-If this is… Oh, this is very bad. I gotta do something…! It’s all up to me!”

The rabbit then took off, eager to ward off the threat that had so suddenly appeared on the island…

“It seems… that was an unusual occurrence…” Togami astutely raised a finger to his temple in thought.

“It’s best… if we go, too…” Chiaki murmured softly. “Jabberwock Park, was it? Let’s hurry.”

As the gamer departed, Akane raced to chase after her.

“H-Hey, wait up…!”

“Kids…! Don’t run off!” Chisa cried out, and went after them.

“B-But what about everyone who was swimming…?” Hajime couldn’t help asking. Togami scowled.

“There’s no time to wait for them to change. I have a bad feeling about this… I’ll head over first.” With that, the heir stalked off with a grave expression. Fuyuhiko clicked his tongue.

“Shit, just what the hell is going on…? I’ll be really pissed if this is something fucking stupid!” The yakuza grumbled as he stormed off, as well. Everyone who was swimming returned to the hotel to change.

_‘What is this…? What the hell is going on?’_ Hajime thought to himself gravely. “O-Okay… Jabberwock Park, right?”

“Boooo! There’s just too many Crabs-san!” The dancer pouted, being one of the last to leave. “Fiiine, I’ll just step on them later!”

_‘You crabs better run while you still can…’_ Hajime deadpanned in his mind.

~*~

As the last of them arrived in Jabberwock Park, Usami’s shouting voice could be heard ringing throughout the park.

“Where are you?! Where are you hiding?!”

“H-Hiding…? Who are you talking to?” Hajime asked with a perturbed expression.

“Upupu~!” An obnoxious laugh could be heard coming from somewhere nearby, none of them could place where.

“Hey, hey! Where are you? Show yourself!” Usami demanded heatedly.

“Ahhh-hahahahahaha!” The laughter just kept coming… And then, a stuffed bear appeared, sitting on the pedestal next to the bronze statue. It had a white half and a black half; a kind smile on one side and a devious grin on the other; a normal black eye and an ominous, edgy-looking red eye that almost seemed to glow with a dark delight. “Why, hello there! Thank you all for waiting! Long time, no see guys! I am Monokuma! I’m the Headmaster of this Academy~!”

The bear then stood up and hopped down into the main plaza of the park. He traced a lazy circle as he got a good look at all of them.

“Ahem, now that I have made my dashing appearance, the first thing I need to say is… This is so friggin’ **lame**! Lame, I say! Lamer than the lamest lame sauce!” He raised his paws in outrage before lowering them and emitting steam as he seemed to drool. “Oh, wait. Lamesauce?! Is that tasty?”

Usami stomped up to the bear with authority.

“Just as I thought… It was you! But… how…? Why is Monokuma here?!”

_‘Monokuma…?’_ Hajime latched onto that name, not knowing who he was.

“SHAAADDUP!” Monokuma yelled, paws up in outrage again. “I’m livid, you know… And I’m about ready to barf thanks to your lukewarm attitude! Just what’s with this ‘ **heart-throbbing school trip** ’ crap anyway?! I’m bored! So hopelessly bored! This just ain’t fun at all! You better knock off this farce right now! You’ve gotta make this, you know… meet the demands of the world. Nobody wants to see high school students living calm and peaceful lives. What everyone wants to see is… Other people’s misery… and Despair…”

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched angrily as he snarled.

“Wh-What the hell is with this stuffed animal…? Nothing he’s saying is making any damn sense…!”

Togami chewed at his nails nervously.

“What… What is going on? What is that thing?”

Usami stepped forward protectively, wielding her magic stick.

“Be careful, everyone! Stay back and leave this to me! I don’t know why Monokuma is here, but as long as I have this magic stick…!”

Monokuma abruptly charged the rabbit, tackling her.

“Yah! Opening~!”

It was like something straight out of Looney Tunes. Monokuma boorishly rushed Usami, and a cloud of dust was kicked up from the result of their struggle. The comical sounds of Monokuma’s savage beatdown could be heard coming from it as well, as he and Usami would occasionally poke their heads and other appendages outside the cloud of dust.

“Hiiiyah…! Hiiiyah…!” The bear cried out gleefully as he chopped, punched, and kicked Usami.

The bunny quivered in both pain and outrage.

“S… Stop it…!”

“Chi-yah! Chi-yah!” Monokuma kept up his beatdown.

“Kyaaaaaaah…!” Usami screamed, as she suddenly got the boot and the cloud dissipated. She was on the ground, crawling toward Monokuma and her magic stick, which was right next to his foot.

“And now, for the coup de grace…!” Monokuma lifted up his foot to snap the magic stick in half… and to everyone’s confusion, he froze mid-motion. He stayed like that for several prolonged, awkward seconds. And then he giggled… “Oho… **Ohohoho** … That’s clever. You **aaalmost** had me, ya bastards… I’ll be taking this~!”

With that said, Monokuma swiped up the stick in his paw… and made a dash for it. Usami bounced to her feet and trembled furiously, steam blowing out of her ears.

“Hey…! G-Give that back…!” The rabbit ran after Monokuma, who just kept giving her the runaround.

“You can’t catch me, you can’t catch meee~!” Monokuma called out mockingly as he kept running around the park with Usami in hot pursuit. He’d occasionally leap atop the statue, and then hop off a random corner to speed off in that direction.

It was… it was a really pitiful sight. Watching Usami hopelessly chase after Monokuma like that. The chase couldn’t have lasted more than a few minutes, but it did eventually come to an end. Usami seemed to pick up on the patterns of Monokuma’s paths, and she eventually managed to tackle him, swiping the stick back from him…

“Y-You hateful bear…! If you won’t, then I-I’ll just break it for you!” That said, Usami snapped her magic stick in half, looking triumphant with her paws on her hips. “Th-There! What do you think about that?!”

Monokuma, on the ground, just giggled at the turn of events.

“Nice, nice~! You did exactly what I wanted you to! And by the way, you broke Rule #05, so I’ll be taking that outta your hide! But first, I’ll revel in my flawless victory~…” The bear mused to himself… and began making ‘snow angels’ on the ground with that permanent grin etched on his face.

Usami froze, and began to sweat bullets.

“R-R-Rule #05…? There’s not a…?” She looked over at the students and Yukizome, who all had their e-handbooks out for some reason. “O-Oh no…! What did you do?!”

Monokuma hopped to his feet giddily, paws patting his tummy contentedly.

“That stick was the Rule Maker, riiight~? You were gonna trick me into breaking it before I usurped control! You probably could have even destroyed me if I’d just smashed my foot down onto that stick~! Alas~… I smelled that **totally obvious** **trap** from a mile away! Thanks for being my patsy, though. With your attention diverted, **their** attention was diverted, and that meant I could implement the new rules toot-sweet~!” Monokuma sighed contentedly. “And now that you’ve broken the Rule Maker, it’s gonna be hard to add future rules… That’s fine~! I got in eeeverything I needed. And those **hacks** are gonna take their sweet ass time trying to regain control, so in the meantime, **Anarchy’s** the name of the game~!”

Usami trembled furiously once again.

“Y-You…! **You wanted this**! You knew we wouldn’t let you have **complete** control, so you wanted to slow **us** down, too…!”

Monokuma tilted his head at her curiously.

“Well, duh! It’s reeeally annoying when your enemy’s got the home field advantage, so I had to fix that! How else does one manufacture a Killing Game~?” Monokuma raised a paw as he showed off his dark grinning side. “I don’t need **absolute power** anyway~… If **those guys** had bothered to learn anything, it’s that I don’t hold a gun to people’s heads and make ‘em do as I please! All I do is give helpful little nudges… Sooo~… Just having my foot in the door is enough for me~!”

As Usami fumed and moaned about dirty trick, Hajime butted in with an ashen expression.

“Wh-Wh-What the hell **is** all this?!” He held up his e-handbook, panicked. “K-Killing?! **The hell**?!”

Monokuma tilted his head again, as if people were questioning something that was totally normal.

“Hmm…? Do you not like your Headmaster’s amendments to the rules? I’m sorry, but we needed to cure this lovey-dovey puke fest… I told you, we need to meet the demands of the world~!” Monokuma cackled gleefully. “Ah, but before I fully get into that… I really do need to take care of ooone more thing that’s bugging me. Basically… Usami, you’re too plain~! White rabbits are faaar too plain~! Sooo, I’m gonna make you in **my** image! Aaah-hahaha~!”

With that said… Monokuma tackled Usami again, kicking up that cloud of dust again as they struggled intensely.

“This is what happens when you defy me… I’ll crunch ya! I’ll bite ya! I’ll rip you apart~!”

“Kyaaaaaaah! Stoooooop it…!” Usami cried out in distress. Monokuma just huffed in exasperation as he kept up his merciless assault.

“Hey, hold still! This wooden stick… isn’t gonna shove itself in, y’know!”

Usami gasped.

“Noooooo! That’s a no-no! **That’s a big no-no**!!!!!”

But, much to the rabbit’s dismay… When the dust cloud cleared, Monokuma was standing off to the side, smirking proudly with his arms crossed as he gazed over her new look. Her body was half white and half pink, which mimicked him, but she was also wearing a diaper now…

“Taaa-daaa! ALL DONE!” Monokuma giggled.

“Wh-What is this?!” Usami demanded, looking over her own body. “I’m not supposed to look weird like this! Change me back to normal!”

Monokuma tilted his head mockingly.

“My, my~… Defying your nii-san’s fashion sense. Is Monomi a little troublemaker~?”

“N-Nii-san…? Monomi?” The rabbit asked, troubled.

“Your current position is too wishy-washy, so I’m setting you to be my imouto, **Monomi** ~! Though it’s only an external setting, after all~…” The bear giggled, paws over his mouth mischievously.

Monomi raised her paws in outrage.

“Wh-Why do I have to be your imouto?!”

“Nee-san, then…?” Monokuma hummed, clearly not liking the idea. “You wanna be the neesan that got separated at birth…? Hmm… That doesn’t really feel right. Yep, you’re definitely imouto-chan! Sooo, that’s how it’s gonna be… Monomi! From now on, if you ever disobey me, I will never forgive you!”

Unbeknownst to the squabbling plushies, Mukuro was watching this unfold with bizarre, unidentifiable feelings rolling around in her gut. This… This seemed familiar. The words, the interactions… Even those words, “nee-san”, “imouto”, they churned up such… volatile emotions within her.

But she didn’t have a sister… Did she…? Mukuro was well aware that her memories were missing, but she would think that she would remember having any remaining family. And if she did have a sister… Why? Why did watching this make her so…?

“H-How…? Even the display changed to Monomi!” Monomi cried out in anguish. “H-Hey! I won’t let you make up your own settings!”

The rabbit cried out in pain as Monokuma punched her viciously.

“Stupid fool! Do you think you can win against me?!” The bear huffed.

“Owww! It hurts a lot when you punch me!” Monomi whined.

Monokuma cackled after pulling away.

“How about that?! Now you’ve learned your lesson!”

Hajime, like everyone else in the plaza, just watched this unfold with a completely lost expression. What… was this…? Living stuffed animals fighting each other… That was, like, completely insane…! And that bear still hadn’t explained those damn **rules** …!

“Hey… What’s with this stupid performance…?” Fuyuhiko repeated the question on all their minds.

“Wh-Who friggin’ knows?!” Akane exclaimed, slack-jawed.

“But… It’s obvious something bad is happening.” Chiaki pointed out reasonably.

“Whaaa…? Wh-What is this? What’s going on?!” Teruteru demanded.

Monomi sobbed loudly.

“Huh…? Now she’s all weird-looking!” Mahiru muttered.

Monokuma hung his head in depression.

“Weird-looking…? She matches me now, y’know! How insensitive…”

Ibuki held the sides of her head in panic as she looked between Monokuma and Monomi.

“There’s more of ‘em?!”

“Wh-What does this mean? What **is** that black-and-white tanuki…?” Peko wondered aloud.

“I’m not a tanuki, I’m a bear! I’m Monokuma!” The bear roared furiously, paws up in the air angrily.

“I-I don’t understand it myself, but… a new stuffed animal appeared?” Souda rubbed his head, feeling a migraine coming on. “I mean… why is that stuffed animal even talking?”

“Seriously, I’m not a stuffed animal, I’m Monokuma! The Headmaster of Hope’s Peak Academy!” Monokuma roared in outrage.

“Monokuma?!” Nagito exclaimed, the name not ringing a bell with him.

“Did you say… Headmaster?!” Nidai scowled, arms crossed.

Yukizome took a tentative step forward.

“If you say you’re the Headmaster… Then what’s your real name?!” She knew deep down Monokuma wasn’t associated with Jin Kirigiri. The stern-faced man wouldn’t pull a stunt like this… So she had to know who this new threat was to her students.

Monokuma grumbled moodily.

“Jeez, you guys do not listen! I am **Monokuma**!” The bear shook his head exasperatedly. “Regardless… it appears everyone has gathered. Now then, as the Headmaster, I shall make a formal declaration! From this point forward, the **Killing School Trip** will now commence! A school trip where everyone gets along has no stimulation at all! And it’s so damn boring~! Nobody wants to play a game like that! You guys agree with me, right?! Sooo, let’s begin our **Killing School Trip**! Naturally, you guys are the contestants!”

Teruteru backed up fearfully.

“Killing… contestants…?” He echoed, the words not seeming to make sense to him.

Monomi raised her paws in outrage.

“Wh-What are you saying?! I will absolutely, positively not allow such bloody events!” She cried out in agony as Monokuma viciously kicked her this time. “Owww! It hurts a lot when you kick me, too…!”

Monokuma huffed again.

“Jeez… Your brain sure is tiny, Monomi. How many times do I have to tell you? Pay attention this time. Except in manga, imouto is never smarter than her nii-san! Now then, we got off-topic for a while, so let’s go back to the explanation of the **Killing School Trip**.”

Mikan trembled fearfully.

“Wh-What do you mean, ‘Killing School Trip’…?”

Monokuma tilted his head curiously.

“Well, isn’t that obvious? You guys are going to **kill each other**!”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head nervously as he chuckled.

“Kill each other…? I-I see…” He recoiled in shock and dread. “ **K-Kill each other**?!”

“Wh-What are you saying?! That’s impossible!” Teruteru insisted, trembling.

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Well, don’t you think it’s kinda lame and boring that you can’t leave this island unless you **all get along**? So I’m changing the rules~! If you want off this island, please kill one of your friends without getting caught~!”

Mukuro frowned at that. That **was** in the new rules for the trip… But…

_‘Rule #05: Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is destruction of surveillance cameras and monitors. Rule #06: Anyone who kills a fellow student and becomes ‘Blackened’ will graduate, unless they are discovered. Rule #07: Monokuma dictates the terms of ‘discovery’ of the Blackened, we’ll talk about this later. Rule #08: The Body Discovery Announcement will play as soon as three or more people discover a body for the first time. Rule #09: You are free to investigate this island at your own discretion. Your actions in this regard are not limited. Rule #10: The blackened may only kill a maximum of two people during any single ‘killing game’.’_

“You say ‘without being discovered’… What does **that** mean?” The soldier demanded, glaring at the bear.

“It means, secretly kill someone without your classmates finding out! Or you’re gonna get **punished** ~!” Monokuma deflected the question, cackling. “Y’see, it’s plain and simple. Aren’t you glad it’s sooo easy~?”

Byakuya scoffed with his arms crossed.

“Hardly. You’re still not going into any detail… Rule #07 says you dictate the terms of ‘discovery’, but isn’t it unfair to make people play a game without knowing all the rules…?”

Monokuma giggled uncontrollably.

“Like I said, we’ll go over that **later**! I’m a loophole connoisseur! Ain’t I a stinker~?” He teased bashfully.

Kazuichi grumbled, rubbing his forehead again.

“F-Forget that! What’s **punishment** supposed to mean, anyway?! At least tell us that!”

“Basically… it’s an execution!” Monokuma revealed passionately.

“E-Execution?!” Sonia recoiled.

Monokuma giggled uncontrollably.

“The heart-stopping **punishment** that follows a killer’s imminent success or failure~! This is definitely one of the perks of the **Killing School Trip** ~! What sort of spine-tingling punishments will we see? I can’t help it, I’m already getting excited~! There may even be some unique punishments, like impaling you through the head with a Thingamajig claw…! Ahem, any method of killing is fine. Popular ones like bludgeoning, stabbing, strangling, and poisoning… To shooting, beating running over, burning, bombing, slashing, drowning, electrocution, crushing, cursing… Please, choose whichever killing method you prefer. No time limit, so you can kill as you please… It’s an All You Can Murder Buffet~… A theme park of murder… That’s what this **Killing School Trip** is all about~!”

Hajime clutched his chest without realizing. With each beat of his heart, a sharp, stabbing pain coursed through his body… He didn’t understand… what was happening to him.

“D-Don’t fuck with me!” Fuyuhiko snarled, hands twitching furiously at his side. Kazuichi raised a fist angrily, too.

“Th-That’s right! Who on earth would kill someone?!”

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“It’s like I said earlier~… I’m not **ordering** anyone to kill. Whether or not you kill someone is entirely up to you! But be careful~! Youth doesn’t last forever! It’ll be too late if you guys wait ‘til you’re in your forties to start killing each other~!”

Teruteru combed his hair nervously.

“I-I don’t believe any of this… I don’t believe any of this… I don’t believe any of this…” He chanted desperately.

“Wh-What if nobody ever gets murdered? Does that mean we’ll never leave this island?” Mahiru demanded with an ashen expression.

“Who knows?!” Monokuma answered flippantly. “Anyway, I’d like for you all to go through this with Killing School Trip in a healthy and positive manner.”

“W-Wait just a minute! Why do we have to do this?!” The photographer demanded with more heat.

Yukizome clapped a hand on Koizumi’s shoulder reassuringly.

“You **don’t** have to! I won’t allow it…!” She raised a clenched fist in determination as she glared at both Monokuma and Monomi. “These two are just outsiders, but I…! I’m a **real** teacher of Hope’s Peak Academy! I won’t allow you to touch a hair on my students!!!”

Yukizome’s impassioned words seemed to have a pacifying effect on all the students as they calmed down and looked to the orange-haired woman. That was true. Before Monomi and Monokuma had shown up, she had introduced herself as their homeroom teacher… She might have been in the same predicament as them, but she was a certified teacher! You don’t mess with someone like that, especially not when they were a teacher at the greatest learning institution in the world…!

Monokuma snickered mischievously.

“Well~… It’s not like **I’ll** be doing the touching… Your little scamps will be doing all the slaughtering with their own hands~… But go on, give it your best shot, toots~!”

Nekomaru cracked his knuckles threateningly at the bear.

“Hold on… You’ve been running your mouth for quite some time now… I don’t want to get violent, but if I do, I have no idea what might happen!”

Akane raised her hands excitedly as she grinned wolfishly.

“What, a fight? Do I need to beat the crap outta that black-and-white bear?”

Peko grabbed for the sword on her back.

“Who would dare try to kill…? I’ll put a stop to it, with force if necessary.”

And though she stayed silent, Mukuro’s hand **was** getting twitchy for the survival knife she carried around at all times. Ibuki raised an index finger pointedly.

“If you keep saying stupid stuff, the athletes in our group are gonna lose their patience!”

Monokuma hung his head dejectedly.

“Ah, is that so…? Well, I guess I expected this reaction…” He snapped his head up, raising a claw threateningly. “If you guys wanna do things by force, then I’ll have to fight back with a little force of my own…”

“Force? What are you gonna do…?” Monomi whimpered fearfully. Monokuma turned his back on them.

“Surge… O gods who dwell between light and darkness… In accordance with our contract, I summon thee now…” He raised his paws triumphantly. “Come forth, Monobeasts~!”

In the next moment, the bronze statue of the five animals crumbled… and from within it, five robotic monstrosities emerged, each one towering above all of the humans. Each one unique in shape and size, too. Hajime had seen lots of strange and surprising things since he arrived on this island… But still. The phenomenon taking place right in front of him was blatantly out of this world.

“H-Huh…? Huh…?” Sonia stuttered, frozen in horror.

“Wh-Why… did the statue move…?” Mahiru gasped in shock.

Monokuma cackled gleefully.

“That’s no statue! They’re Monobeasts~!”

“M-M-M-Monsters!!!!” Kazuichi screeched helplessly.

“No, I just said they’re Monobeasts!” Monokuma reproached the mechanic.

The strange thing about genuine surprise is when it happens, your voice won’t let you express it. That’s how Hajime felt. That’s what… Hajime was forced to accept. The sudden appearance of a monster might be normal in anime and video games… And that’s precisely why… he couldn’t grasp the reality of this situation… He couldn’t even feel fear. All he could do was stand there, aghast.

“N-No… this can’t be… This is just… too weird…!” Mikan trembled, arms shakily shielding her head in fear.

“Am I… having a nightmare or something…?” Fuyuhiko stood there, slack-jawed.

Hiyoko laughed snidely.

“Kyahaha~! A nightmare, he says! He just admitted his brain is a total flower patch~!”

Monokuma raised a claw threateningly.

“Jeez… You guys sure are a skeptical bunch…” He growled impatiently. “If something doesn’t fit in your narrow notions of common sense, you just deny it outright… How stupid. Ignorant cavemen are better than you all! Classifying events according to their genre is a disease of the modern age.”

Monomi puffed up emotionally and stepped forward.

“E-Everyone! Please stay back! I-I will protect everyone! Even at the cost of my own life… I will protect everyone!”

Monokuma retched.

“Huh? What’s this? Blegh… Ugh… Ah, I know! This is nausea! Your sickly sweet sense of justice makes me wanna puke!” The bear shook his head rapidly to clear it. “It was already decided, but now I’m not gonna wait anymore! You’ll be my **example to everyone**!”

Having said that, Monokuma hopped up on the robot that looked like a giant pterodactyl as it proceeded to take flight. A Gatling gun emerged from its body, took aim at Monomi as it loomed overhead… and fired like a maniac. Monokuma gesticulated wildly, highly entertained as Monomi was punctured and perforated like Swiss cheese.

A stray bullet made it past Monomi and cut Hajime’s cheek. He glanced down at the cut, highly disturbed. Monomi’s body eventually collapsed, dead, and her tattered, hole-filled bow fluttered to the ground.

“Wah… Waaah…” Teruteru held his head as he shrieked in terror. “WAAAAAHHHHH?!”

“Wh-What is that?!” Kazuichi screamed, feeling just as frightened.

Ibuki foamed at the mouth, eyes rolling into the back of her head.

“A-blub-blub-blub-blub… It’s only the first stage… and Monomi is already dead…!”

Tanaka quaked in fear as he held his hamsters close, protectively.

“I-Is that a demon…?! Or perhaps… It’s a weapon from the future…?!”

Monokuma cackled gleefully.

“Monobeasts are dreadful weapons of destruction~!”

Even though a monster suddenly appeared, not a single one of them tried to run away. It’s not that they didn’t realize it was a monster… They were just… vastly out of their element. They had never experienced anything like this before, and had no idea how to deal with it. That reality was very lethal in this particular moment.

“Upupu… That’s right, this is what I wanted~! This feeling of Despair~! Giving an example was totally the right call! Ah-hahahahahahaha~!”

Unlike the exuberantly cackling Monokuma, they were completely frozen. As though they had forgotten to breathe… They stood there, horrified. They were powerless… No different than ants washed away in a storm.

“Now then, I believe I’ve made my point…” Monokuma showed his dark grinning half proudly. “Just so we’re clear, you guys can’t defy me. If you don’t want to end up as fish food, you better not disobey me! Just so you know… I don’t feel mercy or sympathy. Cuz I’m a bear, after all~! An excuse like, ‘I got high off the this tropical atmosphere,’ won’t work on me at all! Being ignorant of the rules is no excuse~! Well, that’s true of any society, really. Now then… Enjoy the remainder of this liberating and harsh school trip~!”

Monokuma belted out one last insane laugh before taking his departure. The Monobeasts vanished with him.

_‘In truth, I… I’m so horribly tired. Everything’s just so unreasonable… I don’t even care if this is the aftermath.’_ Hajime thought to himself, morbidly. He looked around sluggishly. _‘Everyone looks the same… The same tired expressions on pale faces…’_

“Wh-What just… happened…?” Nagito choked out.

“U-Um… Um…” Teruteru quivered nervously. He poked his fingers together anxiously. “I-I… just won’t believe it… That’s it… That’s all there is to it…”

Nekomaru clenched a fist and bowed his head in anguish.

“It’d be one thing if we were up against a human or even an animal…” He clutched both sides of his head in terror and bellowed. “What the hell can we do against a monster like that?!”

Kazuichi massaged his forehead, trembling like a leaf.

“I-It’s impossible… Why is something impossible happening…?”

Byakuya raised an astute finger to his temple.

“Well, it’s not… really impossible. These Monobeasts or whatever they’re called are machines. Then, Monokuma must also be the same. As long as they’re machines… It means someone made them, and is controlling them.”

Peko straightened up rigidly at this revelation.

“ **Who** could be responsible…? Why were we put into this unexplainable situation…?”

“Hey!! Who is it? Who?!” Mahiru demanded, looking around pointedly at everyone.

Teruteru laughed nervously, poking his fingers together.

“Ah… Ahahaha… It could be anyone… It’s not like I believe it, anyway. There’s no way I’d believe something like that.” He combed his hair twitchily. “More importantly, are you guys hungry? Let’s stop thinking about this and just eat!”

“… You can eat first.” Chiaki mumbled.

Byakuya clenched a fist furiously.

“No matter how confused or upset you are, I don’t mind. However, remember this… I don’t know who in the world is orchestrating this, but… We don’t need to be cautious of those machines… or even of whoever’s controlling them… More than anything, we must be cautious of… Ourselves.” The heir crossed his arms and looked around at everyone who was scattered around him in the plaza. “Being brought to a tropical island with complete strangers, and ordered to kill each other to escape… That creates fear in our minds, and the desire to escape that hopeless fear… is our worst enemy.”

They all looked around at each other warily. Even Yukizome, who had given that courageous, impassioned speech to Monokuma earlier… had gone quiet as she looked at her students in distress and worry. As much as her impulses prodded her to give another gung-ho, rousing sermon, she had a sneaking suspicion that right this moment was not the time. Not when they were being forced to confront the honest truth… that each of them **did** have that potential to murder. But she wasn’t going to give up. These kids needed her now more than ever, and she was going to make damn sure to keep spirits high! They were only so scared in this moment because they were **strangers**! She would begin dismantling that fear in the coming days… because a killing was only likely to occur if they stayed strangers, if they never bonded. Their bonds… were their Hope.

**Only a student who kills a classmate can escape this island**...

That’s what many of the students were thinking. If they hoped to escape this situation, they had to sacrifice a person. There was a possibility that a killing would never occur, but…

_‘Even I’m no different… So can I truly be confident that something like that isn’t gonna happen?’_ Hajime thought to himself with a fierce scowl. _‘… No, there’s no way I can know for sure. In this nightmare of a situation, I don’t have the confidence to say that outright. Once you’re suspicious of something, you’ll start to be suspicious of everything… Even of yourself. That’s why it felt so hopeless…’_

Mukuro felt a wave wash over her… She knew this feeling well. Anticipation. This was a feeling she experienced every day, on and off the battlefield… But this time, it was saturated with something else. This was no ordinary anticipation.

But just like those peculiar dark emotions that surfaced earlier, Mukuro had no way to pin down why she was feelin this… excitement. This **glee**. Perhaps… she was glad to be thrown back into a familiar environment. A trip where civilians colluded with each other and became friends, where a soldier’s protection was unwanted and unneeded… That might have been the norm, might have been what she **should** have wanted…

Yet maybe the life of a civilian wasn’t for her. Perhaps… she lost that luxury of a “normal” life when she ran off to join Fenrir. War has a way of giving you perspective on things, and as Mukuro saw it, she’d been perfectly useless in that pacified environment. If she had stayed like that, with the exception of battling Nekomaru, her skills and knowledge would have gone rusty…

And if anything had happened to Nagito because she had lost her edge, Mukuro never would have forgiven herself. A dull or broken blade was lethal to the soldier wielding them… This was the same for people, why the concept of ‘human weapons’ was feasible to her.

This was… for the best. For Nagito. For herself.

An island where everyone was wary of one another… Mukuro could understand these feelings and emotions much easier. Everyone would be more predictable… And if they were predictable, she could respond with the appropriate amount of force and not be disciplined for it.

Hope or Despair… None of that mattered to Mukuro Ikusaba. The mission. The target. The VIP. Threat assessment. These were terms and concepts she was more familiar and comfortable with. For now, she knew exactly who each of those was, could assess the biggest threats to her new VIP.

Well… assuming they hadn’t actually met, and her lost memories weren’t inaccurate. She would think it would be hard to be inaccurate in identifying a person when they were **this** familiar. Trusting her instincts was the one thing she could do, that she **had** to do, because it was all she knew **how** to do…

… So for once, why did she feel uneasy about completely relying on those instincts…?

That day became a day unlike any other… A day which held a more significant meaning. It was a special day… A very meaningful day full of **Despair** …

That was the beginning. The **Killing School Trip** had begun, and this tropical island was the stage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tsubasa wo Kudasai~ I want to spread my wings and fly. In a sky without sorrow~
> 
> Sing it with feeling, now. n_____n You guys are here for the Despair, so we'll slide down into madness together~ Enough delaying the inevitable. 
> 
> You vets from AIF know just about anything goes in my stories. I hope you newbies will be in for a treat. You dislike a character with a passion? We'll work on that~ I took Celestia Ludenberg and gave her a depth that most fanfic writers don't even scratch the surface of. That's what a lot of readers felt, anyway, after reading AIF. XD Here at Joker Enterprises, I can't MAKE you like a character, or dislike them. I just let the writing and development do the talking. YOU GUYS make the decision of whether those characters are coming along great, or if I need to tweak some things. :3 
> 
> AIF's Free Time's were good for ironing out what I wanted, in the end. It was rough because I mainly focused on the protagonist and his relations, but now I hope to up my game with AIF: GD's Free Time's since I want to cover as many as I can. It'll get easier as the number of characters whittle down; it is the way. lol So if I make the occasional rant about "too many characters", well... You have my reason for that rant. :3 I think it's only fair if characters can have the chance to shine, and that applies to all~ I complain out of love~ ... And chapter length. XD


	4. Chapter 1, Part 1: Destination Despair

Hajime blearily opened his bloodshot eyes at the sound of harsh pounding on his cottage door. Last night… had been less than stellar. Probably the worst night of sleep he had ever had in his young life.

After they had all scattered for the evening, Togami’s words of warning ringing in their ears, Hajime had returned to the hotel and stayed out by the pool for a little bit, admiring the crystal clear sky sprinkled with stars. They really had been beautiful to gaze at… and yet… They were **too** beautiful. He couldn’t get it out of his head, no matter how hard he tried – someone was going to die, that was the only way any of them was going to get off this island.

Hajime… wanted out of this place. He could admit it to himself. The mere thought of being here, in a place where his life was at constant risk, where everything was so impossible and unreasonable… Hajime wanted to leave, and he wanted to leave **now** … Yet the act of killing was different from thinking about it. His desire to escape warred with his conscience, and he had spent much of his night screaming until his voice gave out…

Now that he was properly awake – he had tried going back to sleep after the morning announcement, to try and fruitlessly wake up from this nightmare once more – he could register the contents of his cottage. There was a wide, flat screen TV across from his bed, covering up one of the windows with blinds in his cottage, a potted plant next to it in the corner, and another one to the right in front of it. To the right of those was a small sofa that sat in front of another window with blinds and next to a small table with another, smaller potted plant on top of it. And to the far right, across from his bed, was a pristine bathroom that was also fitted with a tub and shower.

… That was everything on the ground level. There was a small set of stairs that led up to a smaller upper area of the cottage that he hadn’t even checked out yet. But if the pounding on his door was reverberating with the pounding in his head like this, he’d kept his early morning visitor waiting long enough… Groggily, he got out of bed and shuffled over to the door, shoulders sagging as he tried fruitlessly to wipe the sleepiness out of his eyes. As he turned the knob, the door seemed to be forced open with a little more force than he was expecting, and he stumbled back and stared at his visitor in both bemusement and annoyance… before he finally registered who that visitor was, that is.

At that point he adopted a deer caught in headlights look. Oh god. What on earth had he done now to deserve **this**?

“Morning, Hinata-kun~!” Chisa chirped with the sunniest, most innocent expression on her face as her eyes sparkled. Yukizome-sensei was clearly a morning person. Which… made a lot of sense, really, but the sheer energy she was radiating… Was she like this **all** the time?! “We’re all meeting up in the cafeteria, and will be doing so **every** morning, okay~? That goes for nighttime dinners, too!”

That sweet smile and disarming tone… She made it seem like this was optional, but Hajime knew from the way that she was inching towards him, fingers twitching, that this was **not** a choice or something he could turn down… Deciding cooperation was the better part of valor, his hands flew up peacefully and he smiled as reassuringly as he could muster.

“O-O-Okay, okay…! I p-promise I’ll be there in just a few minutes! At least let me wash my face!”

At first he thought he was going to get dragged off again, the way she frowned and dissected him with those bright, cheerful eyes… But, it turned out the brunet hadn’t needed to worry. The orange-haired woman closed her eyes and nodded, happy as a clam.

“I’m glad we understand each other~! You wouldn’t believe the morning I’ve had.” Her disarming grin twitched the tiniest amount.

... No, no he probably wouldn’t. And he had no intention of finding out what had her so wound up…

“Souda-kun, there you are~!” Yukizome cheerfully cried out, turning to the side slightly as she had spotted someone else out of the corner of her eye, outside of Hajime’s cottage. “Let’s get to **breakfast** , hmm?”

“Gah…! M-M-M-MONSTER…!” The mechanic gave a shrill scream.

… If it was any consolation, Kazuichi made a commendable effort in bolting away, Hajime noted as he poked his head outside his cottage. Apparently, however, one needed to have a good running start, because Yukizome-sensei seemed to lack the word ‘restraint’ in her dictionary… at least when applied to herself. She was on top of the mechanic in mere seconds and had a secure hold on his ankles before she turned her head back toward Hajime’s cottage and waved innocently as she began walking off to the hotel’s cafeteria with an unwilling Kazuichi Souda in tow.

Hajime shuddered. Yup. He was avoiding that fate at all costs. He didn’t want to find out what being hunted down by Yukizome-sensei felt like… His hair would probably go gray from looking over his shoulder every couple seconds of every waking hour.

… And she’d **still** get him, in all likelihood. Hajime was **not** taking chances here. That woman terrified him…

~*~

“You’re late, Hinata.” Togami scoffed as Hajime came waddling into the cafeteria a few minutes later, looking spooked.

Hajime looked around with bloodshot eyes, not seeing their bubbly Sensei anywhere.

“… Is she **still** out there?” He muttered, running a hand through his hair warily. Kazuichi was huddled in the corner, rocking back and forth, after all.

Ibuki nodded sagely.

“Yep, yep~! Akane-chan got pumped up when Souda-chan mentioned the monsters guarding the gates to the other islands, and she ran off to challenge them!” The musician crossed her arms and grinned smugly. “Akane-chan doesn’t stand a chance with Yukizome-sensei **and** Nidai-chan giving chase~! Ha~! She’s totally screwed!”

… Well, Hajime couldn’t disagree with her there. Yukizome-sensei was overkill enough as it was – Nidai joining in was like a double KO. … For Akane and only Akane, that is.

“I-I just wanna go home…!” Kazuichi whined, still rocking back and forth. Mahiru huffed, hands on her hips.

“Hey, at least sit over here with the rest of us! And straighten up! Shouldn’t you be ashamed to be acting like that, despite being a man?”

“… No.” The mechanic muttered, tears pricking at his eyes as he yanked his beanie over his head in fear and dread.

Saionji laughed snidely.

“Where would you even run, anyway?! Even if you didn’t have Sensei breathing down your neck, there’s nowhere to run **to** , y’know!” The dancer muffled her cruel giggles. “You’re sooo stupid~!”

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously.

“I dunno about that… You’re dissing the guy that can make scooters go 575 mph.” The brunet paused thoughtfully. “… Or at least that’s what he said. If we could just find a way to make those scooters able to ride across the water…”

Kazuichi giggled nervously.

“Yeah, well, I can only work with the parts I’ve got accessible to me! If I had materials for a boat or sub, I **would** make ‘em, y’know? Ehehe…” He tugged his beanie over his face harder. “As-is, even 575 mph is a bit of a pipe dream right now…”

Hajime blinked owlishly.

“You… You lied about that?” The brunet was left feeling a bit disappointed, really. He knew that 575 mph was an outlandish speed, edging into rocket territory… But Kazuichi was the Ultimate Mechanic. Ultimates didn’t boast about something if they **couldn’t** do that.

Mahiru rolled her eyes with an impatient huff.

“Why’d you even buy that in the first place? He was obviously pulling that number out of his ass!”

Hajime winced in shame. Okay, she had a point about the number being random, but…

“I wasn’t lying!” Kazuichi protested, shaking a fist in aggravation. “That useless rabbit said some of the other islands had factories and other production places that I’d be over the moon over, so I asked her about what we had available! If she wasn’t lyin’, I could totally make those things go 575 mph, **easy**! I just… can’t, without those facilities. Damn monsters are barring us entry to the other islands!”

Mukuro tilted her head curiously.

“How would you even navigate a vehicle when it approaches such speeds?” A rocket leaving Earth’s atmosphere and landing on the moon was one thing… It was another applying those kinds of speeds to everyday vehicles and transports like scooters.

Kazuichi studiously sidestepped the question with another nervous chuckle.

“It would be a most exhilarating ride!” Sonia beamed pleasantly. Near her, Tanaka appeared somewhat pale, just imagining what a deathtrap that would be.

“A nightmare on wheels.” Byakuya snorted dismissively. “There will be no such modifications – far too hazardous. For the rider… and bystanders.”

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously.

“S-So, uh… How fast **could** you make them go, with the parts you have access to right now?” The brunet knew there was questions better left unasked, and that was probably one of them. … But his morbid curiosity compelled him.

Kazuichi tugged his beanie down hard.

“I dunno… 230 mph… maybe? I’d hafta run some tests. But I think I can manage **that** much, at least.” Tears pricked at the mechanic’s eyes again as he bawled. “If only Sensei would just **let** me…!”

Everyone stared. Kazuichi… could still make those things faster than some cars. Most seemed impressed, unnerved, or spooked by this…

“… Pfft!” Saionji burst out giggling, covering her mouth in a poor attempt. “Can’t even make it go half as fast as you said you could! Aren’t you embarrassed, calling yourself an Ultimate?”

… But there’s always that **one** person, isn’t there?

Kazuichi shook a fist at the dancer, enraged.

“I-I respond better to praise, y’know!”

_‘… Poor guy.’_ Hajime really did pity him, watching Saionji belittle the mechanic in every which way. Guy could probably turn a toaster into a robot, and he was getting roasted by a little kid… Little brat snickering with that twisted, devilish grin… Kind of like… a demon child…

… Maybe Saionji just hadn’t had her growth spurt yet. Yeah. That would soften the blow to Kazuichi’s pride.

“… And on top of that, your fashion sucks! Better go back to letting your mom dress you every day!”

… Then again, the Ultimate Traditional Dancer **was** pretty relentless, regardless of how old she really was…

“Y-You don’t have to be so m-mean…!” Mikan wailed, attempting to rise to Kazuichi’s defense. Saionji scoffed loudly.

“Nobody was talking to you, Pig Barf! Shut your ugly, stuttering face!” The dancer pursed her lips and turned her head away snidely.

“M-My ugly, st-stuttering face…?” The nurse stared with wide, petrified eyes. Saionji snickered.

“That’s it, that’s the face right there~!” The dancer sneered. Mikan covered her face defensively with both arms.

“Wh-Why are you so m-mean…?”

“Aww, you’re the kind of girl that bullies just looove to torment, aren’t you?” Saionji just kept up the merciless assault. Peko had had enough, however.

“You should stop now.” The swordswoman’s tone brooked no argument. Saionji grudgingly clammed up.

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously as he looked down at the plate of food he’d amassed.

“A-Anyway… Who made breakfast? It… smells great.” The brunet knew it was a lame attempt at changing topics, but he had been kinda responsible for Saionji’s mouth going off like that… Plus, he was curious.

“It **is** quite exquisite, for a commoner’s touch.” Byakuya concurred, having already scarfed down a couple plates already.

Mukuro shrugged nonchalantly.

“I dunno. It was already set out when I got here.” The soldier had been one of the first few up and around in the morning. Sensei had liked and admired that she was standing vigil around the cabins.

… Not that Mukuro had been doing it for **her**. Mornings tended to have a lower chance of an attack happening, since anyone could awaken at any time… But the soldier wasn’t taking any chances after last night, when the ‘Killing School Life’ was initiated. Mukuro had resolved herself to learning everyone’s quirks and habits to properly assess the actual threats to Komaeda-kun…

Needless to say. Sensei would have to be watched. She was a force to be reckoned with, rounding up all the students…

Ibuki waved her hand in the air excitedly.

“Ah, I’ve got it~! Teruteru prepared this food, right?”

Teruteru laughed nervously.

“Mmhmhmhm… Unfortunately, it wasn’t me.” He took a pompous stance, rubbing his chin. “You see… The food I make doesn’t taste as shitty as this does.”

Sonia tilted her head curiously.

“Hmm…? It is delicious, though.”

Teruteru wagged his index finger arrogantly.

“ **Just** delicious… right? Compared to the **world class dishes** I make, a dish that tastes ‘ **delicious** ’ would still be considered shit…” He pointed in outrage. “In fact, even comparing them is out of the question! Comparing MY dishes to this lowly peasant food, how rude!”

Hajime held up his hands peacefully.

“H-Hey… Don’t take it so personally…”

Teruteru rubbed his chin as he grinned suggestively.

“I’m just saying… if you guys ate my food, you wouldn’t be able to control yourself.”

“What does that mean?” Peko asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, let’s just say your jaw wouldn’t be the only thing that drops~!” Teruteru raised his fists in outrage. “In fact, your panties would drop, too! Like the black thong that Pekoyama-san is wearing, for example!”

Peko blushed up a storm, despite the skeptical stares he received from most of the class for **that** remark.

“You creep! How do you know about that?!” The swordswoman demanded.

_‘H-He guessed correctly…?’_ Hajime couldn’t believe it.

Sonia frowned, looking down in thought.

“However, if Teruteru did not prepare this food, then the one who did is…”

“Could it have been Monokuma?!” Ibuki grumbled sourly.

“… Is it safe to eat food cooked by something like that?” Hajime wondered.

Byakuya scoffed, arms crossed.

“That’s why I’m tasting it for poison, to make sure it’s safe for consumption.”

_‘You don’t have to eat **that** much to test for poison…’ _Hajime deadpanned at the empty plates over at the heir’s table.

At that moment, Yukizome came waltzing into the cafeteria with that same sunny disposition that Hajime had seen earlier. Nidai was behind her, hefting a hogtied Akane over his shoulder.

“We’re baaack~! Has everyone been enjoying breakfast?”

Hajime gaped at the bound wild girl, and how so easily and nonchalantly Nekomaru carried her.

“Y-You… You tied her up…?”

Nekomaru shrugged his big shoulders casually.

“Eh. She’s a slippery one, what can we say? She **really** wanted to fight those things.”

A tick mark appeared over Akane’s forehead as she gritted her teeth.

“I’m gonna kick your asses so haaard!” She bellowed. The wild girl blinked as she sniffed the air. “… Hang on. I know that smell. **Meat**! Glorious **MEEEAAATTTT**!!!”

Hajime sweatdropped as he watched the gymnast attempt to escape the team manager’s grasp with renewed vigor. Akane was… She seemed kind of ‘simple’. Though, he supposed that was kind of a good thing. The simple ones didn’t stir up too much trouble. Right…?

… Except when they wanted to go off and fight giant killer robots… but… Hajime would prefer that to her wanting to fight **him** or something.

Yukizome gazed around the cafeteria pleasantly and proudly, hands on her hips.

“Good! You’re all here. Look at you all, sitting in your tidy little tables~!” The teacher beamed proudly.

Mahiru raised a hesitant hand.

“H-Hey, Sensei…? Do you know who prepared breakfast?” The photographer asked, sort of hoping it was the orange-haired woman. But she had a sinking feeling…

“No? Not really.” Yukizome tilted her head curiously. “I thought Teruteru might have gotten an early start.”

Cue more grumbling from the portly chef. Before they could pursue this topic further, however, a huge ruckus was made as a shrill cry rang out. All eyes homed in on the source almost immediately.

“Ohhh… no, no, no, no, no…” Mikan wailed, trapped in quite the… compromising position. The lower half of her body was raised up over upper half as she laid on the floor; her ankles were hogtied by… some kind of power cord. As a result of the position, her skirt had been rendered utterly useless, exposing her panty-clad bottom and her bare yet also bandaged legs. What’s more, her shoes and socks had fallen off as a result of the trip…

But… **panties** …

Hajime couldn’t stop staring incredulously.

“I-I-I tripped…!” The poor erotically displayed nurse whimpered.

“Can you even call that tripping?” Hajime wondered aloud.

“How in the world did you end up in such a… compromising position after tripping?!” Byakuya was at a loss for words, too.

“Well, it certainly makes **me** happy! I’m veeery happy right now~!” Teruteru gushed.

“Nooooo! I’m so embarrassed! P-Please help me…!” The nurse begged.

“Awww~! She looks so adorable when she’s embarrassed~!” Ibuki gushed, too, all starry-eyed. “It’s sooo moe! I’m practically snorting with joy~!”

“W-We should help her up!” Mahiru cried. And like that was a call to arms, she, Yukizome-sensei, Hajime, and Byakuya all helped untangle the nurse’s legs from the cord and helped the poor girl to her feet.

Nagito held up his hands peacefully as he gazed at the nurse in concern.

“Ts-Tsumiki… are you okay?”

Mikan clutched her head woozily.

“Ugh… My head is throbbing a little, but I’m okay…”

_‘Your head’s… definitely not okay.’_ Hajime couldn’t help thinking to himself.

“She’s beyond being just a clumsy girl. That fall of hers was like a magic trick or something…” Mahiru muttered with a wry smile.

Chiaki hummed thoughtfully, tapping her chin.

“So… why don’t we get started? Sensei wanted to talk with all of us, right?” The gamer rubbed at her eyes blearily. “I’m… getting sleepy…”

Byakuya nodded in agreement, crossing his arms.

“Right… I’m not finished eating yet, but we should begin before we get even more off-track…”

Hajime raised his eyebrows in mild surprise, unaware the teacher had wanted this to be a sort of breakfast meeting… He had assumed she was just trying to make sure they stayed all fed and taken care of.

“Wh-What did you want to talk about, Sensei?” He couldn’t help but ask the pleasantly beaming woman who clapped her hands gleefully.

“I promise, this won’t take long! I know you guys wanna just get out there and do your own things… But I figured some ground rules would help keep things stable!”

“Some ground rules…?” Nagito mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Byakuya snorted.

“That goes without saying. That’s why every morning and evening, we’ll be eating together, right?”

Yukizome nodded happily.

“Yep, yep~! I hope we can do some things together beyond just meals, but that’s a decent way to start, don’t you think?” The orange-haired woman clasped her hands behind her back pleasantly. “Monokuma wants you guys to doubt each other. If we just did our own things, eventually someone would break down from the pressure. That’s… what happens when you’re fighting by yourself. But if we’re united, these new rules won’t mean anything! Even if you’re all strangers right now, you can be so much more than that… Think of the growth you can experience, talking to and interacting with people you normally wouldn’t. You’d be surprised who you can be friends with!”

Fuyuhiko scoffed, arms crossed.

“Yeah, yeah… All that friendship crap again… But you’re in this shitstorm just like we are, yeah? How do we know **you’re** not gonna snap, if Monokuma says the right words or some shit?”

Yukizome’s smile dropped at that, and her arms fell to her sides. Hajime couldn’t help thinking this was the first time she looked so… serious. But she wasn’t glaring at the yakuza for his accusation. Her gaze was too soft and compassionate for that. And she was looking around at all of them, not just the gangster.

“I don’t expect you guys to immediately just… trust me.” The orange-haired woman took a deep, composed breath. “I know… Everything’s so crazy right now. Brought to this island, no way to escape, and now someone is trying to scare you all into killing… But I meant what I said, last night. I’m a teacher of Hope’s Peak Academy, even if I’m technically just… an assistant. I can assure you… that bear is not related in **any** way, shape, or form to Headmaster Kirigiri, who brought me onboard. I’m… I’m an alumni of Hope’s Peak, y’know? I’ve associated with the school for years, so I know this has nothing to do with the man. Whoever’s in charge… They mean you guys harm. And I’m going to do everything… **everything** in my power to protect you!

Yukizome gave each of them a meaningful look in turn.

“So whatever Monokuma cooks up… If you feel scared, threatened, unsure… If you ever feel like you can’t trust **anyone** … I want you guys to come to me… okay? Maybe I can’t provide the answers you want. Maybe you can’t bring yourself to trust me yet. But no one… should have to fight those fears alone. It’s my **job** to be there to support you. And I swear, whatever you tell me in confidentiality, I won’t tell **anyone** else without your permission. Even if I ever feel it would be better to approach any of the others, I will help you as best as **I** can without breaking your trust. That’s a promise.” The teacher gave a fragile, hopeful smile. “We’ll get through this, guys. I know we will. Each of you is amazing with a bright future, and **no one** has to die. A human’s life… is irreplaceable. It can’t be worth whatever Monokuma might promise you. So just… stay strong. For me?”

Just like the previous night, Yukizome-sensei’s words seemed to set everyone at ease. Even Fuyuhiko appeared mollified, or at least less inclined to start trouble. Who knew the profound effect an adult’s presence could have, even in a situation like this? It wasn’t just the fact she was an adult and a Sensei. Yukizome-sensei’s words spoke from the heart, were carefully thought out, and carried a significant weight. She was just as confused and lost as they were, but she was standing up to take the reins and reassure them… Something they all sorely needed in these desperate, crazy times.

Hajime felt slightly embarrassed for freaking out last night, like he had… Though he chose to keep that to himself. He was all better now, after hearing that.

“So besides morning and evening gatherings, what else?” Nagito wondered, raising an index finger curiously. “That can’t be the only ground rule you had in mind.”

“Well, that’s kind of what I wanted to ask you guys about.” Yukizome clasped her hands behind her back again. “What would make you guys feel safer? I kinda wanted to open up the floor a bit and hear from all of you, rather than make you think I’m just thrusting a bunch of pointless, useless rules on you.”

Ibuki waved her hand in the air energetically.

“Ooh! Ooh! Ibuki proposes tying up Teruteru-chan~!”

The chef recoiled a little at the suggestion.

“E-Eh…? Whatever do you mean?”

“He **is** kind of a predator…” Mahiru mused, looking off to the side distractedly. “Maybe make the hotel off-limits to boys when the girls are changing into swimsuits…?”

Nidai nodded sagely.

“I can stand outside the gate to keep watch, if it helps…”

Mahiru beamed.

“That’d be great!”

Teruteru stood ramrod straight.

“That’s… that’s too cruel!” He quivered in dismay. “Can we go back to the ‘tying me up’ idea?”

“We’re not here to get your rocks off!” Nidai denied.

“Maybe we should just poke his eyes out instead~!” Saionji proposed with a dark look in her eyes. “We can do that to **all** the perverts!”

… And if left to her, that could mean **all** the boys. Hajime shivered in dread.

“Fuck you, too.” Fuyuhiko growled in annoyance and warily glared at the dancer.

Mukuro tilted her head, ignoring much of the back-and-forth banter.

“How about a curfew?” She wasn’t sure why, but the idea just… popped into her head. Like it was an expected thing to do in this situation – well, not quite even that. It was more like… it **had** to be that way, or it’d be too weird, otherwise.

Chisa hummed thoughtfully.

“I did consider that… But I figured some of you might want to vent any nervous energy at night, so…” She tilted her head slightly. “What do the rest of you think?”

“I’m fine with that.” Souda muttered, laughing a little nervously. “S’not like I got anything better to do than sleep, anyway…”

Saionji sneered.

“Aww~! Does baby need to be tucked in, too?”

The mechanic understandably wilted and went back to his corner, rocking back and forth. Byakuya crossed his arms and frowned.

“A curfew is reasonable. Too much freedom can lead to… unfortunate circumstances.” He didn’t need to explain what **that** meant. “Rules exist to serve and protect. Besides, if we’re all running about at 3am, that will lead to erratic sleeping patterns… Which leads to irrational thoughts and decisions…”

Fuyuhiko curled his hand into a fist at his side and shouted.

“Screw that noise! You can have your Kumbaya crap, but you’re not gonna tell **me** what to do! If I feel like goin’ out, you ain’t stopping me!”

Sonia laughed softly.

“I must confess, I, too, would like the option of a nighttime stroll if the mood strikes… The stars are quite beautiful.”

Ibuki nodded eagerly.

“Ibuki can only count her toes and fingers so many times before Ibuki gets bored and needs to **run** ~!”

Byakuya stared at the musician flatly before gazing reproachfully at the princess and yakuza.

“Kuzuryu, I can understand. But you, too, Nevermind?” The heir scowled. “Shouldn’t you prioritize everyone’s safety over your personal preferences? Does that not make the mark of a true leader?”

Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes and reiterated himself, while Sonia apologized humbly. Mahiru waved her hand dismissively.

“It’s not like we have to make the curfew at the start of nighttime, yeah? We could make it 11pm, or midnight…”

Nidai crossed his arms and hummed thoughtfully as he closed his eyes.

“Or maybe instead of time-based, why not make it so you hafta be with at least one other person to be outside your room after nighttime starts?”

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously.

“Th-That makes it pretty easy to kill someone, though, if you don’t tell the rest of us…”

Yukizome smiled as an easy solution came to her.

“The buddy system is good – but you also have to come and tell me if you’re going to be outside your rooms, and you have to tell me who you’ll be with. Does that seem fair?” At everyone’s apparent acquiescence to this suggestion, even Fuyuhiko’s grumbled response, Yukizome clapped her hands together again. “Okay! This seems like a pretty good start. I don’t want to eat up your guys’ time any more than I already have, so we can save everything else for later, unless you think something’s urgent.”

For a few moments, no one else seemed to have any concerns. But then Byakuya spoke up again, scowling.

“Hold on. I have two more items I want to address.” The heir looked around the room pointedly. Yukizome tilted her head curiously at him.

“What is it, Togami-kun?”

The heir raised an index finger to his temple thoughtfully.

“I will not argue Yukizome-sensei holds absolute authority out of everyone here. However, there may be times when she is occupied, and the rest need a stand-in authority figure to watch over them. A stable chain of command should be high up on our priorities.”

Mukuro hummed, her expression blank as always.

“True. Even armies have lieutenants and other chains of command…”

Nidai nodded sagely.

“Sports teams need captains and assistant coaches, after all…”

“A Class Rep…?” Yukizome mused. “That’s fair. I was going to have you guys get to that tonight, but if you want to tackle that right now, you can go ahead, Togami-kun.”

Byakuya nodded sternly.

“Rejoice. I shall accept the position.” He looked to the side as he frowned thoughtfully. “Now, onto the other matter at hand…”

“Wait just a second!” Mahiru cut in, scowling in annoyance.

“… What is it?” The heir narrowed his eyes at her reproachful tone.

The photographer placed her hands on her hips and huffed.

“Wh-What did you just say…? I don’t care how you excuse it, you’re being too forceful! Deciding to be the Class Rep all on your own… and why does it have to be you, anyway?!”

Togami inclined his chin arrogantly.

“Who is more fit to lead other than me? I am the **Ultimate Scion** of the Togami household, destined to stand above all others.”

Mahiru pointed at him angrily.

“S-Seriously! I’m telling you that attitude of yours is too forceful!”

Nagito held up his hands peacefully.

“Koizumi, please wait. It’s true Togami may be a little forceful, but given our current situation… I believe it’s a leader’s duty, under circumstances like this, to be forceful to a certain degree…”

Mahiru frowned as she held her arms behind her back.

“That may be true, but… If we just need someone who can lead people, then even Nevermind can…” She trailed off meaningfully.

“No, perish the thought. I am merely a figurehead.” Sonia beamed pleasantly.

Fuyuhiko snickered mischievously.

“If you really want someone else, **I’ll** do it…”

“Nobody asked you!” The photographer grumbled sourly, glaring at him.

Nagito waved a hand casually at the Togami heir.

“Well… he must have the qualities of a leader if he can accept the role under these circumstances.”

“If everyone’s okay with it… then I’m okay with it, too…” Mahiru muttered, looking around the room.

No one else objected, though it’s not like Byakuya gave them much time to do so.

“Then, I guess we’ve made our decision… Don’t worry, as long as I’m the leader, I won’t let anyone become a victim. I will guide you all! That much, I promise.”

“Kyaaa~! So reliable!” Ibuki cheered.

As everyone settled with the idea of Byakuya being the Class Rep, Hajime mused to himself as he gazed at the heir.

_‘It’s true he’s reliable, but… I’m a little surprised… I didn’t think he was the type of guy who’d say something like that… I expected the **Ultimate Scion** to look down on us like we’re bugs or something.’_

“Now, let’s move onto the topic at hand for real this time… I have **something to show** you all.” The heir revealed.

“Something to show us?” Hajime echoed.

“It’s at **Jabberwock Park** at the central island… Come, follow me!” He said so bluntly, turning and leaving the restaurant as he stomped outside.

“J-Just as I thought… he sure is forceful…” Hajime muttered.

Mahiru sighed wistfully.

“Jeez… We may have made a mistake in choosing him as the leader…”

Everyone seemed to make similar complaints, with the exception of a few, like Mukuro, Peko, Sonia, Nekomaru, and Chiaki. Yukizome-sensei just beamed at all of them with an all-knowing smile.

… Hajime felt nervous about that smile. She knew something, and hadn’t brought it up with them yet. Was it the thing Togami found? If so, why leave it to that guy to unveil it?

The brunet supposed there was only one way to find out…

~*~

When the last of them reached Jabberwock Park, it became rather clear what Togami had found so important to drag them all the way out there to talk about it. An ostentatious thing sat on the pedestal where the bronze statue once sat… It looked like a giant **bomb** , and the digital timer on it displayed that it had 21 days, 3 hours, and 42 seconds before it would… go off…

Hajime shuddered at the sight of that monstrosity. It had gears spinning around the pole that kept the bomb standing up like that.

“It looks like a clock, but something seems… off…” Hajime frowned in concern. His eyes widened as he realized what bothered him. “It’s… counting down…!”

“Was this here last time we came…?” Mahiru wondered aloud.

“No, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t!” Nidai growled.

“It wasn’t.” Mukuro confirmed flatly.

“I found it this morning… when I was exploring the island one more time.” Togami revealed, arms crossed. “It’s unknown… when it was actually placed here.”

Peko kept a neutral expression, though a bead of sweat ran down the side of her face.

“Monokuma must have placed this object… What does this countdown even mean?”

Ibuki hummed dejectedly.

“I have no clue…”

Teruteru combed his hair nervously.

“Mmhmhmhm, once again, something has appeared that I don’t understand… But it’s got nothing to do with me. Because I refuse to believe this is happening.”

“Could it be…? This better not be a bomb!” Nidai scowled fiercely, arms crossed.

Kazuichi reeled back in shock and screamed.

“A b-b-b-b-b-BOOOOOOOOMBBBBBBB?!”

“If they wanted to blow up this island, they could have done so by now.” Mukuro pointed out. “There’s no need for a countdown.”

“Th-Then… what are they counting down…?” Mikan wondered anxiously, poking her fingers together.

“It’s a mystery…” Akane grumbled.

“A mysterious mystery, isn’t it?!” Monomi exclaimed.

“Kyah!” Sonia cried out in shock, which prompted Monomi to scream as well.

“Kyaaah!”

“Monomi?!” Hajime couldn’t believe the rabbit was still around.

“Wh-Why are you here…?” Mahiru asked, as shocked as everyone else.

“I heard everyone talking while I was patrolling, so I came over…” Monomi answered.

Ibuki poked her fingers together nervously.

“No, not that… Didn’t Monokuma kill you?”

Monomi giggled.

“Ah, so that’s why you were so surprised? Pfft, heeheehee! You don’t have to worry about that! After all, I can never die!”

Tanaka chuckled with a dark grin on his face.

“I see… You must be an undead abomination, risen from the foulest depths of the Netherworld by black magic.” The breeder made a theatrical gasp. “Do you want me to make you my thrall?!”

“Monomi’s a mechanical stuffed animal, right? Doesn’t that mean she can’t die in the first place?” Chiaki mused.

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head and nervously laughed.

“Now that you mention it… She’d need only, like, a spare or something.”

Monomi deflated.

“’A spare’…? What a mean thing to say…”

Byakuya huffed in impatience.

“However, you have arrived at a perfect time. There’s something I wanted to ask you. What is the meaning behind this timer and this countdown? Answer me…” The heir demanded heatedly.

Monomi tilted her head in confusion.

“Huh? Countdown?” The rabbit recoiled at seeing the monstrosity up on the pedestal. “Ha-wa-wa! What is this?! Um… I’m sorry… I… don’t know what this is…”

“You really don’t know…?” Peko asked with an arched eyebrow. Toward the back, Yukizome was smiling a little bit too twitchily.

“I-I’m sorry… I don’t really have a grasp of what Monokuma is up to…” The bunny sincerely apologized.

“You don’t know? Even though you’re Monokuma’s imouto…?” Saionji asked.

“I’m not my niisan’s imouto!” Monomi cried out indignantly. Hajime was left wondering if she accepted the role or not, as was everyone else. “A-Anyway! Let’s all do our best! Let’s kick the evil Monokuma off this island!”

Byakuya scoffed in annoyance.

“If you don’t know what the countdown is for, you’re useless to us. Get lost.”

“Um… Let’s… together…” Monomi trailed off morosely.

“I said get lost…!” The heir demanded more heatedly.

“Kyaaa! I-I’m sorry!” The rabbit apologized before scampering off.

… With Yukizome-sensei hot on her heels.

“ **You’re not getting away that easily**!!!” The teacher yelled after the rabbit, much to the students’ confusion.

If the rabbit didn’t know anything useful, then what was the point of chasing after her? The students were left wondering about their teacher’s intentions, but decided to leave the woman to it. If anyone could squeeze any possible information out of the rabbit… It would be Yukizome-sensei.

“Perhaps you are being a little too harsh?” Sonia mused. “I am starting to feel sorry for it…”

“S-Sonia-san! C-Can I call you that…? No, I insist you let me call you that!” Souda declared forcefully. “Sonia-san! There’s no need to feel sorry for that thing, she’s obviously working with Monokuma.”

“Who the fuck cares about that stuffed animal…? More importantly, what the hell is that clock?” Fuyuhiko arched an eyebrow.

“Looks ominous, doesn’t it…?” Byakuya raised an index finger to his temple in thought. “Who put that object here, and how did they do it in just one night?”

“I can’t imagine…” Hajime muttered.

“Which means it doesn’t make any sense! Also, it’s deadly!” Teruteru decided with a blissful, innocent smile on his face.

Togami gritted his teeth and curled his hands into a fist.

“However, that’s not all that’s unimaginable… This island is full of mysteries we can’t even begin to imagine… For example… how were the eighteen of us brought to this island?”

Kazuichi massaged his forehead in annoyance.

“I wasn’t trying to think about that since it was bugging me too, but… He’s right. That **is** a mystery.”

“There’s more…” Togami continued. “Why is Jabberwock Island, which was known for being a popular resort destination, now an uninhabited island? There is no sign of tourists or even citizens on this island… Is something like that even possible?”

Tanaka hummed thoughtfully, arms crossed.

“All civilizations are destined to collapse… Nothing begets existence… and existence begets nothing…”

“So it… collapsed?” Mikan stared with wide, petrified eyes.

“Society is much like fruit. Once it matures, it is inevitable that it will eventually rot.” Sonia mused. “As the economy grows, the private sector stagnates as elders and bureaucrats become more and more powerful… As time passes, this power becomes the status quo, and crushes the seeds of any possible reformation… Such a sad trend.”

Mahiru flashed a wry smile.

“Mmm… I don’t really understand all that, but I feel like the situation here is somewhat different…”

Saionji sneered.

“Maybe… the Monobeasts killed everyone on this island?”

“And that’s how it became uninhabited?!”

Mukuro frowned at the theory.

“I dunno… Body disposal is way harder than you think. And if beasts like that were attacking people, the buildings and surroundings would have left battle scars of **some** kind… I haven’t seen anything like that.” Truth be told, the uninhabited nature of Jabberwock Island had perplexed Mukuro for quite some time. The fact it possessed functioning and stocked facilities, this seemed more like a military safehouse kind of deal… At least to her.

Maybe Jabberwock Island was evacuated and taken over by a military presence?

“That’s true… We don’t know anything for certain.” Byakuya frowned ,arms crossed. “This mystery remains a mystery, it seems.”

Ibuki groaned.

“Grrr…! It’s like everything here is just full of mysteries!”  
“You’re right… It’s just mysteries on top of mysteries… However, since these mysteries are overlapping with one another, I doubt some no name group is behind this…”

“Wh-What are you trying to say…?” Hajime asked warily.

“I mean… this situation we’re in is undeniably the work of some **enormous organization**.” The heir answered.

“Enormous organization…?” Mikan echoed.

“Monomi, Monokuma, the Monobeasts… They’re all machines that require major technical skill to operate.” Byakuya continued assessing the situation.

“Plus, they’d need a ton of funding.” Souda chipped in, scratching his cheek uncertainly. “And there’s no way those things were made just for the hell of it…”

“ **That organization** might be controlling these machines and monitoring the island with those cameras…” The heir raised a finger to his temple in thought.

“Could those fiends be hiding on this island?” Peko asked.

Byakuya shook his head slowly.

“Not likely. They’re probably running this from somewhere else. Somewhere safe.”

“Where would that be?” Nidai asked, hands on his hips.

“I don’t know…” Byakuya muttered. “Anyway, there’s no mistake that an enormous organization is behind all this.”

Akane crossed her arms and stared down at the ground.

“I see, a big organization, huh… I can’t imagine what kinda people they could be…”

“Well, let’s see…” The heir listed off the organizations associated with their class that he knew of. “There’s my Togami Corporation… Sonia’s Novoselic Kingdom… The Kuzuryu Clan… and Ikusaba’s Fenrir mercenary group… It would definitely have to be an organization as powerful as one of those groups, if not moreso.”

Mukuro stiffened as the heir casually threw that out there.

“How… do you know about Fenrir…?” The soldier glared heatedly at the heir. While she wasn’t a part of them anymore, she did have her pride in keeping their existence, and her ties to them, top secret. A soldier was loyal to their army to the bitter end.

“Huh?!” Sonia yelped.

Fuyuhiko sighed, stretching his back a little and hanging his head while shaking it slowly.

“I’m used to being mistrusted… do what you will…”

Souda pointed at Togami in outrage.

“Hold on! I don’t care about you, Fenrir, or the Kuzuryu Clan, but I won’t allow you to doubt Sonia-san! Sonia-san is a hot blonde princess! There’s a sharp distinction between her and you punks!”

Saionji poorly muffled her giggles.

“Yes, yes… Just shut up already, loser…”

“L-Loser?! Me?!” The mechanic yelped. Saionji adopted a dark look again as she glared at him.

“It’s obvious from your flashy clothes that you just wanna stand out because you’re actually a loser.” She giggled again. “Hehe… It must be hard to make your living in the Lame Ass Loser Industry…”

Souda shook a fist at her furiously.

“Too far, dude! That’s going way too far!”

Hajime turned back to the heir searchingly.

“Hey, Togami… Were you serious just now? About this being related to your family and Nevermind’s and such…?”

“I’m just using them as an example.” Byakuya explained. “I’m not saying they have anything to do with this.”

“But… You’re certain we’re up against a huge organization, right?” The brunet frowned as he tried thinking of other big name organizations.

“Even if such an organization exists… Why would they make us go through something like this?” Peko mused.

Teruteru scoffed.

“Whatever. How long are we gonna keep talking about this? Why don’t we talk about something more realistic?”

“Our enemy’s purpose is still unknown… As long as we find out who’s behind this, we’ll learn their purpose.” Byakuya sighed, ignoring the chef. “So what we must do now is find out who our enemy is. If we do that, we’ll make that much closer to a breakthrough. Luckily, according to the e-handbook, we are free to explore this island… There will definitely be a clue about the enemy on this island somewhere. Let’s start looking.”

Mukuro eyed the heir warily, but nodded slowly.

“That’s fair… Knowing is half the battle.” She glared at Togami one more time. “But don’t think you can sidestep me. You **will** tell me how you knew about Fenrir, sooner or later.”

Once more, Byakuya studiously ignored her.

“All right! Let’s get this crap done!” Akane hollered. She then grinned innocently. “Uh, what are we looking for?”

Mahiru sweatdropped and smiled wryly.

“… Owari, weren’t you even listening? We need to find clues that will tell us who our enemy is.”

“No problem… No matter how large this organization may be, they will not be able to stand against us…” Tanaka laughed boisterously, his hamsters popping out again. “They are destined to fall and turn to ash at the might of my four Dark Devas of Destruction~!”

Sonia smiled radiantly at the sight.

“Wow! Hamsters came out of your scarf!” She giggled. “Teehee~! They are so adorable!”

“Adorable… you say…?” Tanaka recoiled a little before hiding his blushing face under his scarf. “… Th-Thank you.”

“You’re pretty happy about that, huh?” Ibuki asked, tilting her head.

Souda gritted his teeth in aggravation.

“Look at that guy talking to Sonia-san all casually… I’m definitely gonna beat the crap out of him later.”

Hajime didn’t quite get it himself. He assumed in this tense situation, they needed to be a lot more cautious… But he was glad everyone was in such high spirits. It was strange, but he felt he could rely on them. This was probably what it meant to have the confidence of an **Ultimate** …

… Was he confident enough to call himself one of them? Hajime still couldn’t remember his talent…

“Anyway, let me just say this.” Byakuya announced. “There’s no time think about something as foolish as killing each other. You must do what you have to do. Observe, speculate, recognize, comprehend. Even if it seems impossible… just persevere. But most importantly, follow my lead. I’ll make sure to return you all to your normal lives. This is your leader’s order! Understand?”

“Uhaha~! That’s, like, TOTALLY awesome~!” Ibuki cheered. Saionji snickered.

“That right hand of his is sooo plump. I’ve got the perfect nickname for him: **Ham Hands**!”

“H-Ham Hands…?” Byakuya blinked at the audacity of the traditional dancer. He then chuckled, bowing his head a little. “Hmph… I never thought I’d see the day when someone called me something like that…”

Hajime stared at the heir, baffled.

“Huh…? Why aren’t you getting mad?”

Byakuya arched an eyebrow at Hajime.

“Why would I get mad at something as petty as that…? She observed me directly and thought up a nickname. There’s nothing dishonest about a name like that. Perhaps… I’ve always yearned for this. Though it may seem ironic for me to realize that in this particular situation… Don’t worry. I was talking to myself just now.”

“I-I see…” Hajime muttered, clearly not understanding at all. What he did understand was that Togami wasn’t an overconfident, narcissistic jerk, after all. He was mysteriously calm… He might be reliable, after all.

Nagito laughed lightly.

“All right then. We should listen to Togami and not waste our energy thinking about pointless things! It’s true that we’re not in the best situation, but it’s also not the worst. Because we’re not alone. We have friends we can count on to support each other.” He spread out his arms at everybody.

“Seriously? That sounds so lame!” Saionji whined.

Nagito held up his hands peacefully. It didn’t escape him how Mukuro edged toward the dancer the tiniest amount.

“Ahaha, I knew it. I was thinking to myself just how lame I sounded for saying that.” He chuckled nervously. “Ikusaba, you really don’t need to do anything drastic. It’s fine.”

Mukuro narrowed her eyes at the blonde dancer who just looked away disinterestedly.

_‘… You will be watched. Next time you step out of line…’_

Hajime scratched his cheek as he mused over this whole day, thus far. It didn’t seem like they had accomplished much of anything, certainly didn’t solve any mysteries, but perhaps this laidback atmosphere was fine, too. Trust wouldn’t come right away, but if it could come little by little, wouldn’t that be great?

Hajime chuckled wryly to himself as he gazed up at the crystal clear blue sky overhead.

_‘Maybe I’m making pretty huge progress if I’m already thinking like that… I guess we’ll all be fine with Yukizome-sensei and Togami leading us.’_ And Hajime really did believe that, from observing them. Yukizome’s energy unnerved him a little, but it wasn’t awful in the grand scheme of things – there were people he was much warier of, yet wanted to learn more about.

If only Hajime could predict the events that were to come…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... I didn't get to the bits with Souda that I WANTED to get to. Drat. 
> 
> Oh wells. In time, compadre. We will enhance you in time... And your talent will be used more. XD
> 
> But now it's Free Time~ Maybe check in on Yukizome-chan and Monomi. Orrr maybe let that simmer a little. Why so serious~?
> 
> I dunno when we'll get around to motive. XD I want to let the kiddies squeal around in the mud and play for a bit. Free Time will last either one or two chapters, depending on how many interactions I try and tackle on the first day. I mean, if we don't start off with SOMETHING, we won't have in-depth murders. And I'm sure you guys want to explore the new Jabberwock more, see the sights. ... Find out what's in the upper level of Hajime's cottage. XD
> 
> ... Then again, the first murder isn't super, super deep. It's more of a way to kick things off, all according to Aizen's... I mean Komaeda's plans... 
> 
> It'd just be nice to have something to build off of for later stuff, not just murders. We have Mukuro and Yukizome-chan here. Why not? :3


	5. Chapter 1, Part 2: Destination Despair

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously as he watched the luckster survey the cottage with appraising, yet awe-filled eyes. He knew that, out of everyone, Komaeda and Ikusaba were the ones he’d interacted and bonded with first… So it was natural they might gravitate toward him, since they’d spent the most time together so far. And Hajime didn’t even object to that, personally. They were… decent. A little eccentric, though Ikusaba had the excuse of being a soldier, so she was re-learning social norms and customs. And though Komaeda was out there, at least he didn’t seem to mean any harm.

… But still. Wasn’t barging into his cottage like this a **bit** too much?!

“Uh, Komaeda…?” The brunet hesitated when he saw the unabashed admiration in the luckster’s eyes. That innocent, childlike curiosity.

… Hajime probably should have put his foot down anyway, because he should have been allowed **some** privacy, right? Still, he stayed his tongue for now. It’s not like Komaeda was touching anything… yet…

“I’m surprised your cottage is so basic!” Komaeda gave a carefree laugh and a nonchalant wave of the hand. “It’s practically identical to mine! Oh, but that doesn’t mean I think you’re as boring and plain as useless old me! I’m just surprised Monomi didn’t give you some things related to your talent or hobbies. They could’ve been a valuable clue to your identity, you know?”

Hajime blinked owlishly and furrowed his brow in confusion.

“Stuff related to my hobbies…? Why would those be in here?” He couldn’t help but ask.

Mukuro shrugged nonchalantly.

“Because that’s what the rest of us have. My cottage has military mags, flags, banners, and other memorabilia. Nothing dangerous, though.” Well, that wasn’t a complete truth. There was one thing… But it was hers. And she had it on her since the first meeting in the classroom. She never went anywhere without it – true, other tools might have been more effective in most situations, but that survival knife gave her a profound sense of safety… So it stayed with her, end of story.

… Komaeda-kun said the others might get nervous if she revealed that, though. And considering Hinata’s heightened paranoia and pessimism, the luckster was probably right. So she’d keep mum about it.

Nagito stroked his chin.

“Well, the upper level of my cottage **did** have a few things. Mostly luck-related trinkets. Board games, horseshoes, four-leaf clovers, even stuff hanging from the ceiling that could fall down on you at any moment.”

Hajime stiffened at that vague description.

“Th-Things…? What kind of things?”

Nagito gave another carefree laugh.

“Paint balloons, of course! Dangling by precarious threads… Oh, I suppose there were balls of glitter, too. It’d be such terrible luck to get bombarded by those~… There’s even a giant one hanging over my bed!”

Hajime just stared as the luckster hugged himself with that disturbing smile of his as he looked down at the floor. **Why** did he have deathtraps like that? More importantly, why did he look **happy** about it?

“Hinata-kun’s cottage is probably the same way.” Mukuro pointed out reasonably. At the brunet’s twitchy glance, the soldier shrugged again. “Not the paint and glitter stuff. Upstairs might have things related to your talent. I don’t see why you would be different from the rest of us.”

Hajime calmed down marginally at that. True. Ground level was mind-numbingly basic – if each cottage was different, custom-designed to suit their hobbies and tastes, upstairs would **have** to be different. He was a little nervous to go poking around up there, though… If Komaeda had deathtraps in his cottage…

Well, Hajime wasn’t given much of a choice in the matter. The luckster dragged him up there like a puppy surging with energy, yanking on his leash while out on a walk. Hajime still felt mixed about the luckster’s nosiness, but he supposed he’d let it slide…

It’s not like he’d be doing anything else today, if he was the only one investigating this impressive study. It was small, yes. But those shelves were packed… And while Hajime wasn’t the overly scholarly type, he’d still peruse everything he could. If it gave him insight into why he was accepted into Hope’s Peak, Hajime would gladly waste the day away in here.

“Somebody’s got good tastes.” Komaeda chuckled, pointing at a poster hanging on a wall over a desk that had papers, pens, a mug, and a lamp scattered on it.

Hajime blinked slowly as he registered the poster… It was the very school he’d been obsessing over since he was a little kid. And as he got a better look around the study, much of the contents seemed to be associated with Hope’s Peak in some way. Even the mug on the desk had the school’s emblem on it.

Mukuro was already over by one of the bookshelves. She picked up a random book and thumbed through it.

“This is a yearbook.” Her eyes briefly scanned the shelves. “I’d say at least a few of these shelves are. Probably one yearbook for every year of Hope’s Peak Academy since its inception…”

Nagito hummed thoughtfully, stroking his chin again.

“Just curious, but is there a yearbook of us?”

Hajime cocked his head at the bizarre question. Of course there wouldn’t be one of them! They literally just started their school year!

“Nope. Last yearbook was of Class 76.” Mukuro mumbled, eyeing the shelves shrewdly.

Hajime rolled his eyes as the luckster laughed off the awkwardness of his question.

“Makes sense! But tell me, are yearbooks the only books on those shelves?”

Mukuro shrugged haplessly.

“There’s more than 76 books here. Most of them have Hope’s Peak insignia, though, so…”

“In other words, they’re all probably related to Hope’s Peak Academy in some way…” Nagito chuckled again as he glanced at the stunned brunet, grinning. “I told you that you had good tastes. Your adoration and respect for Hope’s Peak must be second to none! I know I place the Academy on a lofty pedestal, but I can’t say I had the dedication to collect all the yearbooks and all this information… You really are something special, Hinata.”

Hajime floundered a bit as his mouth opened and closed in attempts to speak. This came just as much of a shock to him. He knew he admired Hope’s Peak, but he hadn’t grown this **obsessed** , had he? He… He had missing memories of his talent, not of anything else… right? He vaguely recalled collecting some of the more recent yearbooks, maybe even the very first one just to learn about the Founder and the Academy’s beginnings, but **all** of them? And what were the other books even about?

… He wanted to believe these were all just planted by Monomi and Monokuma. That he wasn’t this far gone… But… Somewhere deep down, he knew that he very probably was this far down the rabbit hole. He wanted with all his heart to be a part of that amazing Academy… Knowing and learning everything about it could have been his way of trying to find a way in there.

Hajime stared at the bookshelves, at a loss for words.

But was it worth it? Maybe his research did, eventually, help him acquire a talent. Maybe he did get admitted to Hope’s Peak Academy, after all these years. But seeing all this, he really must have sacrificed his sanity…

… Among other things…

“I…” Hajime continued to flounder. He gestured a little frantically. “Even with all this, who’s to say my talent is worth talking about?! I-I’m not… athletic, like Ikusaba. And even you have something quirky like luck, Komaeda…”

The luckster seemed to take offense to that as he pointed at Hajime in frustration.

“No way! Someone as passionate and devoted as you must have an amazing talent, Hinata! Hope’s Peak wouldn’t have scouted you, otherwise.” He crossed his arms and frowned thoughtfully. “It really must have been a trick of fate. You researched everything you could about Hope’s Peak, and they saw the Hope that lied dormant within you. A magnetic force was bound to draw you two together… It was destiny.”

Hajime gave the luckster a strange look.

_‘That’s sugarcoating it a bit, I think…’_ He looked off to the side as he thought it over. _‘But… The way Komaeda doesn’t doubt me at all… I start to believe he’s right. He really does help me in so many ways.’_

Mukuro tilted her head a little as she gazed at the brunet, absorbed in his own thoughts.

“There **is** something about you. I can’t quite place it.” And that was weird. Everyone else, she could confidently assert the threats and non-threats from just her preliminary observations. Yukizome-sensei, Nidai, Owari, Kuzuryu, Pekoyama, Saionji… In one way or another, each of them had earned her leery surveillance. Half of them didn’t even mean Komaeda-kun harm, at least not yet… They were just possible threats.

But Hinata? He was woefully average. And hell, Komaeda-kun had a soft spot for the mysterious brunet. Yet there was something holding her back from completely labelling him a non-threat. That ‘something’ nagged at the back of her mind, and would not leave her alone. Hinata lacked the build and reflexes of an athlete, like he said. And he was of decidedly average intelligence, perhaps a bit more paranoid and pessimistic than most of their classmates… Despite that, he was only mildly annoyed with Komaeda-kun at the worst of times.

Nothing about that screamed a potential threat, and yet, her instincts refused to budge. Perhaps there was a hidden side to the brunet? It wouldn’t be the first time Mukuro had been fooled. Hinata didn’t even have to be consciously aware he was doing it… That was just the most likely scenario, even if he did claim to have amnesia, like her.

“See? Another chosen Ultimate recognizes your splendid Hope!” Komaeda raised his hands theatrically.

“Yeah? Then what could my talent possibly be?” Hajime deadpanned, feeling himself recover a little from the haunting sight of so much obsession over one school…

“Hmm… Ultimate Researcher, perhaps?” Komaeda crossed his arms and grinned. “No, no! That’s far too simple. **Ultimate Serenity** , then?”

Hajime balked a little at the peculiar guess.

“What part of me did you look at to come up with something like that…? Is that even a useful ability?”

“I think the ability to bring serenity to others by simply being there is amazing!” Komaeda defended his guess. He hummed. “Let’s see… **Ultimate Clumsy Student**?”

Hajime slouched in defeat at that one.

“Well, considering I suddenly forgot what my talent was, that could be the case…”

“What about the **Ultimate Scatterbrain**?” Komaeda considered next, which had Hinata droop even further

“Don’t go that far… I don’t want an Ultimate Talent like that.”

Komaeda laughed lightly.

“Hey, don’t take it so seriously. It was just a little joke! Hmm… Then… How about the **Ultimate Ahoge**?”

“That’s not an ability at all…!” Hajime spluttered indignantly, which only earned more carefree laughter from the luckster.

“It’s going to be fine~! I’m positive that you have a talent just brimming with Hope.” Komaeda’s grin widened. “Maybe if we read through these books enough, you’ll jog your memory a little.”

Hajime warily eyed the luckster.

“You really think it would be that easy?”

Nagito shrugged and gave another carefree laugh, waving his hand.

“We won’t know until we try! And hey, if worst comes to worst, we’ll still learn about the greatest learning institution in the world. I could think of far worse ways to waste an afternoon.”

Well… Hajime couldn’t argue with that.

All the while, Mukuro scrutinized Hajime, trying to pin down just what bugged her.

… Needless to say, she didn’t find out what it was. Though she **did** hear the word ‘Hope’ enough times in one afternoon for the word to lose its meaning… And she was pretty sure she and Hajime were in the same boat in that regard.

… Oh, Komaeda-kun.

~*~

Hiyoko grumbled as she made her selection.

“Why even have Save Files like this?! If you just hand any newb a game and console like this, that takes, like, 90% of the fun away…!”

Chiaki tilted her head as the dancer and her opponent proceeded to have a multiplayer battle.

“’Cause grinding, and especially EV/IV training, can take a really long time… I didn’t want you guys spending days playing alone and getting bored. This is way more fun, don’t you think?” She asked innocently as she and the photographer proceeded with a racing game.

The dancer only whined louder.

“But I **like** murdering all the bugs in Viridian Forest! And all the stupid **bats** in Mt. Moon!” The version that she and Tsumiki were playing didn’t have those areas ‘cause they were in a different region, but her point still stood!

Mikan’s eyes widened comically.

“Y-Y-Y-You mean your team can die?!” The nurse squeaked, and shrank back at the dancer’s heated gaze.

“It’s a figure of speech, dumbass! Pokemon don’t die, they **faint**!” Although, that always begged the question of what happened to unattended Wild Pokemon that lay defeated after a battle… Did some wandering Nurse Joy come to heal them up?

… That **might** almost explain the endless Caterpies and Zubats.

“Now, now, be nice, Saionji.” Mahiru gave a wry smile and sweatdropped. “You should thank Nanami for letting you play multiplayer with Tsumiki.”

Saionji puffed her cheeks.

“I’m only wasting time ‘til Nanami’s done lapping you, dummy! I wanna take a crack at the ‘Ultimate Gamer’, too!” She couldn’t be **that** hot. Pokemon and Professor Layton were Saionji’s favorite games. **She** was the undisputed master!

Chiaki’s eyes were glazed over as she mindlessly dodged the shell that Mahiru had tried launching at her, to get her off-balance in the race.

“Mm… I’ll try to avoid using my best teams.” Otherwise the dancer would get mad.

Saionji spluttered indignantly.

“ **No**! I want you to throw your worst at me! I want a **challenge**!”

“… You haven’t beaten Blissey, though.” And it was true – every time Saionji got it close to red in health, Mikan would heal it up…

The scary thing about an Ultimate Gamer was that she didn’t just strive for a complete Pokedex like a lot of players did – she simultaneously made sure to give them the very best stats, items, and abilities. And all so methodically and precisely. Chiaki put so many competitive battlers to shame…

Saionji had the luck of having the Ultimate Gamer’s prized Pokemon. Only problem was, Tsumiki did, too. And she wasn’t exactly going about the right way with trying to beat a Blissey…

“I-It’s not my f-fault!” Saionji spluttered in both shock and outrage. She growled in frustration. “Stop using **Softboiled** , damnit!”

Poor Mikan wasn’t listening, though. Her eyes were still wide as saucer plates as she recovered from the fact her poor Blissey had tanked a critical hit, and very nearly died. She was so distraught she missed the fact she used Softboiled twice, bringing Blissey back up to full health.

“G-Gotta keep healing…! Gotta keep healing…!”

Saionji screeched like a banshee at all her hard work being rendered useless.

“ **Fatty’s gotta die**!” The dancer decided viciously. “Th-There’s gotta be s- **something** I can do…!”

… Too bad for Saionji, the next move that came was Thunder, and that was all she wrote for poor Charizard.

Mikan straightened up and stared at the screen with disbelief.

“I-I won?” She flinched when Saionji had gone rigid and quiet as a graveyard, also staring listlessly at her screen.

Mahiru sweatdropped at the development.

“M-Maybe we should trade partners, Tsumiki…”

Mikan tittered nervously, looking to Hiyoko anxiously. The blonde remained silent and unresponsive.

“I-Is Saionji going to be okay…?” And then it dawned on the nurse… she’d just pretty much **murdered** the fire dragon thing Saionji was using… “Eek! I’m sorryyy, Saionjiiii…!”

Seeing the look entering the dancer’s eyes, Mahiru edged over to Mikan and massaged her shoulders, helping her over to where Chiaki was still playing.

“There, there… You didn’t murder anything…”

“B-But I did…!” Mikan bawled. “Saionji **hates** me now!”

“She doesn’t hate you…” Mahiru reassured as best as she could.

“I am going to **fucking murder you**!” Came another unholy screech.

Mahiru sighed wearily and kept massaging Mikan’s shoulders as she settled down to play with Chiaki instead. Somehow, she managed to blot out the dancer’s vengeful tirade for the troubled nurse, though Saionji wasn’t going to be mollified until she took out that… Blissey thing… Mahiru might just have to take a loss for the team here, though she didn’t know anything about Pokemon beyond the very bare basics, and she wasn’t sure how Hiyoko was going to take it if Mahiru just ‘let’ her win…

This was going to be a long day…

All the while, Chiaki played obliviously against her new opponent… Though she did have to adjust to Mikan’s more frantic style of racing…

~*~

“This is amazing~!” Sonia gushed as she was among the first to be allowed into “Tanaka’s Domain”.

It really was a sensational zoo. So many animals that the Ultimate Princess had never dreamed of seeing up close and personal… All of them in cute little habitats and exhibits. And perhaps the most adorable one of all was strutting around so proudly, like he had acquired all of these creatures himself and raised each one with such painstaking care…

And who knows? Maybe Tanaka-kun had done a marvelous job since coming here. Those hamsters looked so happy when Tanaka-kun rambled on about, well, anything. Sonia herself adored listening to his stories.

“S-Stay close to me, Miss Sonia… This place looks… kinda crazy…” Kazuichi laughed nervously as he rubbed the back of his head, looking around at all the exhibits. Lions, tigers, gorillas, snakes, birds, giraffes, zebras... Was that an **elephant** he saw back there?!

Tanaka scoffed at the mechanic’s leeriness.

“Still that prattling tongue of yours, mechanical one! There is not a Hell Beast in all the nine realms that would dare harm the Dark Queen! I would never allow it. And if the Overlord of Ice decrees it, so shall it be!”

The mechanic cast a leery glance at the chuunibyou.

“You sure about that, ya weirdo? These are all wild animals, y’know!” Souda yelped as he saw Sonia approach one of the tigers so nonchalantly. “M-M-MISS SONIAAA! Don’t **pet** it!!!”

Sonia tilted her head as she stroked the tiger’s head affectionately.

“Hmm? Why not?”

Souda spluttered, grasping for a way to help her understand, while also a safe way for her to back away and not lose an arm.

“Y-You… You can’t just **pet tigers**! They’re not like the cats you have at home, y’know?! **They don’t like to be petted**!” The mechanic grinded to a halt in his frenzy as he registered Sonia still had all five fingers, and that the tiger was actually bobbing its head up into her hand and… and…

Was that tiger **purring**?

Tanaka sidled up to the Princess and cackled at how utterly lost Souda looked in that moment.

“Behold my power! In all my many centuries on this earthly realm, I have encountered demons of this variety, so I know full well how to make them roll over and submit to me!” He crossed his arms and boisterously cackled again. “It helps the Dark Queen carries an alluring presence, herself! Alastor cannot help but bask!”

Souda floundered at the eccentric explanation that he couldn’t make heads or tails of. It… It just didn’t make any kind of dumb sense. Tigers were supposed to be these vicious wild animals, but Miss Sonia and this freak were so… so **calm**.

The longer he watched that tiger rub up against Miss Sonia, however, the more he kinda understood… You didn’t mess around with Miss Sonia. He wished he could be that tiger right about now…

The tour didn’t stop with the tiger, of course. Tanaka, that glorified attention hog, showed Miss Sonia **everything**. Miss Sonia frolicked with the flamingoes, ran around with the zebras, played with the chattering monkeys (… and those meathead gorillas), wrapped herself up in the biggest snake Souda ever had the misfortune of seeing (of course that troublemaker said it was quite docile, despite how it could probably make Miss Sonia pop like a balloon), fed some crocodiles and hyenas, watched the rhinos and hippos, lounged with the lions… And all the while, Souda heard more demonic names than he ever cared to hear about in his lifetime. Astaroth, Balam, Beelzebub, Gremory, Jinn, Lilith, Mazoku, Sitri… Where did Tanaka even dig up names like that?

Miss Sonia should have been tuckered out after a long day like that (okay, so they still had half the afternoon)… Of course she still had the energy for the elephant. Baphomet or whatever that freak called him…

“This is a **wonderful** zoo, Tanaka-kun!” Sonia giggled as she stroked that big, gray trunk. The elephant made a happy-sounding noise as it lightly tapped her. Tanaka yanked his scarf over his beet red face.

“Th-These are only their temporary forms… But, the denizens of Purgatory are delighted for your approval, Dark Queen. In truth, I have learned much from observing your interactions! You bring out new sides to these Hell Beasts that I have seldom seen before… You are like a Siren, entrancing them, and even myself!”

Sonia preened at the praise, and she beamed so radiantly… Tanaka and Souda were both mesmerized by that smile.

“We do not have zoos in Novoselic, so I am totes excited to be here!” Sonia pumped her arm enthusiastically. “Could we perhaps see Gremory and Balam once more, before we stop for lunch?”

A bit of steam erupted from Tanaka’s concealed, blushing cheeks.

“Th-This dominion is as much yours now as it is mine. You have full autonomy, and you need not ask permission to enter at any time, day or night!”

Sonia’s eyes sparkled and smiled dreamily.

“You will allow me here, even though my potential has not been fully awakened?”

Tanaka tugged at his scarf, frazzled.

“Y-Y-Your **potential** will hasten to awaken if you meditate and socialize with the denizens here… Do not hold back on my account.”

Sonia pumped her arm again.

“Then I will give it all I’ve got! My only condition is that you accompany me! I wish to see you enjoy yourself, too!” The blonde giggled excitedly at the breeder’s increasingly flustered state.

Kazuichi grunted as he butted into the conversation that was getting a bit too **chummy** for his tastes.

“H-H-Hey, Miss Sonia…? Y-You wanted to come by the shop, r-right? To pick out a scooter?”

Sonia blinked slowly as she remembered that was one of the things she wanted to get around to doing. That was why Souda had accompanied her and Tanaka-kun to the zoo.

“Oh… right…” That sounded much less enthusiastic than before.

The mechanic rubbed the back of his head and laughed nervously.

“You can stop by anytime you like, too! If anything happens, I’ll definitely fix it! I promise!” He flashed a big grin and a thumb’s-up.

… Not that Sonia seemed to pay him much heed as she returned his grin with a polite smile. Souda deflated when the princess resumed giving the elephant more affection.

This sucked.

Kazuichi jumped a few feet in the air as someone cleared his throat behind him. He whipped around, flustered.

“GAHHH!”

… Oh. It was Togami. The fat, rich asshole.

“Souda, I need to have a word with you. There are some things that I wish to commission you to work on.” The heir held a finger to his temple as he frowned.

Souda scowled and looked away in frustration.

“Man, can’t you buzz off for one day?! Miss Sonia was gonna pick out a…” The mechanic deflated again as he realized Tanaka and Miss Sonia had wandered off while he’d been distracted. “… Damnit.”

Byakuya pointed at him authoritatively.

“Only you can accomplish what I need done! For the wellbeing of our class, we cannot waste even a second, so long as that bear is around!” He crossed his arms stubbornly, eyeing the exhibits shrewdly. “Now. Let’s talk somewhere more privately. This place reeks… even if the specimens are fascinating.”

… Uh, duh? This whole thing stank! But if Togami stomping off without another word was any indication, Souda knew he wouldn’t have a say in the matter. He cast one last glance around the deathtrap they called a zoo, and then sighed miserably as he departed, too.

This totally sucked.

~*~

“So what did you wanna talk about?” Kazuichi grumbled as he entered the service shop with the heir hot on his heels.

Togami looked around the shop with appraising eyes. He didn’t seem to care much about the scooters, which everyone else seemed more into. Hanamura, Mioda, Kuzuryu, Pekoyama, Nanami, Ikusaba, Hinata, and Yukizome-sensei had either expressed interest or already claimed one of the scooters. Souda figured Togami, with his fat figure, would be all over those things…

“How hard would it be to make loudspeakers at this stage?” The blond started off thoughtfully, eyes never leaving the equipment scattered around the shop.

Kazuichi blinked slowly as he registered the request.

“Eh? Well… Depends on how many you want. I might have to borrow some parts from the planes, but I might be able to throw something together…” The pink-haired teen scratched his scalp. “Hope you don’t care if they’re a bit crappy, though. I don’t have everything on my wish list yet for supplies and facilities, y’know.”

Togami snorted.

“If you’re building them, I’m certain that even junk would be able to accomplish what we need.” The heir pulled out some blueprints, mainly showing strategic locations around the first and central islands. “The situation is unacceptable as things stand. If we are to respond efficiently in an emergency, we will need these loudspeakers. I do not trust the bear or rabbit to appropriately warn us when the time comes, and we are far too disorganized to reasonably assume that we will unite and have each other’s backs…”

Souda groaned as he looked down at the blueprints. While there wasn’t an obscene amount, this was still going to be a pain in the ass to throw together… At least one speaker in each of the major facilities – ranch, dojo, hotel, supermarket, service shop, airport, zoo, the beach, and that park… The mechanic also noticed the specs on the speakers – Togami wanted each to be able to be used, not just receive transmissions from the others.

This was gonna take a **long** time…

“Can’t you at least get the guys to collect all the stuff I’d need?!” The mechanic whined. He was sure a lot of it was right here in the shop, but those planes were gonna be scavenged like hell… He had a life, y’know?!

“Don’t complain. This is for everyone’s sake,” Togami pointed out with a determined frown. “Now. If I commission Nidai, Owari, Tanaka, Pekoyama, Ikusaba, Komaeda, and Hinata to harvest what you need from the planes, how long do you think you think these loudspeakers will take to create?”

Souda massaged his forehead and scowled.

“I dunno… At least a couple of days.” At the heir’s piercing glare, the mechanic shook a fist at him. “Gimme a break! You want these things to work, don’t you?! I can’t just throw parts together like Lego’s and be done in five minutes! Even wireless speakers take **some** time to build!”

“Fine.” Togami grunted, crossing his arms and eyeing the mechanic shrewdly. “Onto the next project. Those scooters… they have GPS capabilities, don’t they?”

Souda blinked owlishly at the heir.

“Y-Yeah…? How’d you know that?” Kazuichi figured Byakuya didn’t give a rat’s ass about the scooters.

“Would it be easier or harder to reverse engineer that technology to whip up some GPS locators?” The heir pressed, eyes boring into Souda’s.

Souda rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously.

“W-Well… S-Something like that… I could probably do a little faster.” The pink-headed teen nodded firmly. “Yeah… Yeah! Definitely! It’d be a good half a day, at least, but I can do that!”

Oddly enough, even though he was being saddled with more work, Souda found himself warming up to the ideas. After all, like Togami said, his talent was for everybody’s benefit…

… Including Miss Sonia. But he’d just keep that part to himself. The pushy jerk didn’t need to know why he was motivated, right?

Togami nodded firmly in return.

“Very well. Focus on those first. I would sleep much safer if we knew everyone’s locations with absolute certainty.” He crossed his arms and looked off to the side. “We can discuss the other projects later, after we have the GPS locators and loudspeakers. There are other measures I would see taken to ensure everyone’s wellbeing.”

“E-Eh…?” Kazuichi paused. “Wait. Doesn’t the e-handbook kinda have a locator function for us…?”

Togami snorted indignantly.

“That technology was gifted to us by Monomi, who we are still uncertain of where she stands with regards to us and Monokuma. She may not mean us harm, for now, but I would feel much safer if we had something more reliable. Something **we** built, with our own two hands.” He pointed at Kazuichi authoritatively. “As the Ultimate Mechanic, your skill is unparalleled. I know you have the power to do these things, and your labor will certainly be rewarded. A wasted afternoon here and there will doubtlessly weigh on your mind, but remember… Your efforts are for everyone’s sake. Only you can do this.”

Souda looked down to the floor in deep thought, a light scowl on his face.

“Only me, huh…” The mechanic muttered. He wished it was Miss Sonia commissioning him for this, but this stuff **was** for her sake… And hey, who knows? She might notice him if he did this all for her and everyone.

… Still bummed him out he was gypped out of an afternoon with her, though.

~*~

Nekomaru had to admit, there was probably fewer ways that he could enjoy an afternoon to the utmost. Akane was a goldmine of athletic potential enough as it was, even if she had a bit of an attitude problem that needed fixing. But Mioda’s boundless energy, resonating with Akane’s, had him in a pretty good mood. He loved it when his athletes could challenge **him** to stay pumped!

… Because you can bet he didn’t take that challenge lying down.

“AKANEEEEEE!” The Ultimate Team Manager bellowed as he watched the brunette loop around the island yet again, arms crossed over his chest. “Don’t tell me you’re tuckered out already?! You gonna let Mioda steal the lead just after 219 laps?!”

Akane growled, feeling a renewed vigor pumping in her veins.

“Sh… Shut up, Old Man!” The gymnast howled. “I-I’m not beaten yet!!!”

Nidai grinned at the latest burst of speed. Akane was gonna tire herself out faster by doing that, but this was supposed to be a learning experience for her. As an athlete, Akane was supposed to pace herself in training. You couldn’t push your limits if you didn’t set realistic goals for yourself.

Ibuki, on the other hand, was not an athlete. Not in the truest, refined definition of the word. The musician was **definitely** a maelstrom of chaos and hyper energy, which paid off in spades for her right now, keeping up with Akane and threatening to take the lead in their shared training. Or as Ibuki put it, their **race**. What Nekomaru wouldn’t give to take that raw ability and mold it into something really amazing…

Yet, he had to give the girl chops. He could totally respect her stubbornness and free spirit; Ibuki was so passionate about remaining the lead of her band, it was little wonder she didn’t want someone “above” her, telling her what to do. Nekomaru knew when to back away and let a talent do their own thing; you can’t coach someone who didn’t want to be coached. If Ibuki needed the guidance, she’d find that special person to help her by her own power. On her terms.

It really was for the best. If he had his hands full with Akane, adding Ibuki to the workload would really be pushing his own coaching prowess, he could tell. Not that he would mind the challenge… But there were a few others he was interested in, on this island. He couldn’t turn his attention toward them if Ibuki became his responsibility – that girl needed your complete, undivided attention or you’d lose her for sure.

… Ah, Ibuki finally got a leg up on Akane. And it looked like the musician was aiming to lap the gymnast, much to her frustration. On lap 259. Oh, Akane… Was this her current limit? They’d have to fix that. Nekomaru bellowed out a laugh, lightning crackled from his eyes as he cracked his knuckles.

“NEW GAME! This ain’t about laps anymore! If I catch you, you’re gonna be doing 5000 pushups and 10,000 jumping jacks!!! And I won’t do **It** to you until you’re finished with those!!!”

Akane felt a shiver run down her spine at those foreboding words. She licked her lips carefully.

“Wh… What’s **It** …?” The gymnast couldn’t help wondering.

Ibuki giggled gleefully, winking at the gymnast as she **slowed down** and kept pace with Akane.

“Heehee~! Akane-chan’s gonna find out~!” Ibuki abruptly sped up, shooting off like a race horse. Akane blinked sluggishly, still keeping up a decent clip.

… But then she just **had** to take a peek over her shoulder… Needless to say, Akane never even knew what hit her.

~*~

“… I told you, just forget about it! We ain’t **anything** but classmates on this island, you got that?”

Teruteru ceased chopping the vegetables as he heard hushed whispers out in the dining hall. He perked up, upon hearing a feminine voice joining her irritated male companion’s.

“But Young M…”

“ **What’d I just say**?!” Fuyuhiko hissed sharply. “I don’t give a shit about that freak! He can have his pet soldier all he wants! Long as they don’t pick a fight with **you** , he can do whatever the hell he wants!”

Peko’s brow knit tightly together at the Young Master’s stubborn refusal of a tool. She did not understand. The Young Master had to know with this… Monokuma’s appearance, and the eve of what he called a ‘Killing Game’, she would be needed now more than ever. There were **far** too many threats around, and Ikusaba was most certainly at the top of that list.

It didn’t help that Komaeda was so… strange. Who knew what went on in his head? He certainly didn’t do anything about that peculiar loyalty of Ikusaba’s. Things would be much easier if he simply dismissed her services… But the luckster **welcomed** her ‘help’. And the Young Master was going to ignore a clear threat such as this? Why did he have to be so stubborn at the oddest of times?

“Y… Kuzuryu…” Peko corrected herself swiftly at his hawklike glare. “I cannot approve of this. All it takes is but one word from him, and Ikusaba could go after anyone, including y…”

“Hey there, friends! What are we all talking about over here, hush-hush?!” Teruteru gushed as he butted in on the secret conversation. The two of them had been close to the stairs leading outside, but Teruteru had been listening with rapt attention and hanging onto every word. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but this sounds like you two have an intimate relationship~! How about you gimme all the juicy details, hmm?”

Peko considered clubbing Hanamura over the head for knowing too much, but she refused to act without the Young Master’s permission. With a resolute gaze, she looked to Fuyuhiko for orders… only to find the yakuza had slipped out while she and Teruteru were busy staring each other down.

… Well, this certainly filled her with mixed emotions. She didn’t have the faintest idea why she felt the faintest flicker of rage at this turn of events… It was for the best the Young Master had beaten a hasty retreat. This perverted chef was a handful, indeed.

A handful that she would now have to be dealing with on her own… Ah, she had pinned down the reason for her turbulent emotions. Now, what was the quickest, most efficient method for dealing with this pervert and rendezvousing with the Young Master… **That** , she did not know, and would have to improvise quick.

… Hanamura was getting far too close for comfort.

~*~

Yukizome let out a weary sigh as she plopped down on her bed, notepad discarded over on her desk so she wouldn’t obsess over it like she had been for the last few hours… She fell back on the mattress and gazed up at the ceiling listlessly.

_‘How do I even begin to fix this?’_ The assistant homeroom teacher morbidly thought to herself. Monomi hadn’t been willing to talk, giving the same excuse that she **couldn’t** …

Well, she also said Monokuma would possibly turn anything she said against her, which was a little more believable for Yukizome. If nothing else, Yukizome was glad the bear hadn’t tried to somehow turn the students against her and Hope’s Peak, or they’d really be up a creek without a paddle… She liked to think that a flesh and blood teacher was more believable, credible, and reliable than a stuffed rabbit, but given how on edge everyone was right now, anything could happen.

Brought to this uninhabited island without warning. Stranded. A hostile takeover that added further stress and anxiety for everyone. Deadly robots of unknown origin. A possible bomb set to go off in three weeks… This all seemed like something out of a science fiction novel. But Yukizome knew it wasn’t, because she remembered enough about some of the profiles of these kids to know Jin Kirigiri had appointed her as their assistant homeroom teacher…

Heck, she had even met Nidai personally, before the school year had begun. It’s not like he was held back or anything… Nidai-kun was too talented to be a dropout. But Yukizome had a colorful background because of being associated with the passionate Ultimate Student Council President. Meeting and getting to know bright, talented, young people was kind of her job as Kyosuke’s Beloved~…

… A-Assistant, that is. Beloved Assistant. The Most Beloved~

*cough*

Anyway, that’s sort of why she was grateful to have a familiar face here, even if she’d only met Nida a handful of times before all this. It’d just be so much easier if she could just… somehow get back in touch with Kyosuke or Juzo… In the past, she always had their support when she needed it. To be completely cut off from her two best friends… It made her heart ache.

Chisa lazily peeked over at the framed photo on her desk. One where she was yanking their arms in the midst of cherry blossom trees. Then again, she was also the one doing much of the supporting… Those boys would be completely lost without her.

Sitting up, Chisa clapped her cheeks eccentrically, in an attempt to get herself pumped up.

“… Well, I’m not gonna change that now! Damn the torpedoes! Those kids need me, too. I’m not gonna let them down.”

And she wouldn’t. So she’d best get off her butt and check up on everyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's moving a little slow, but it's only the first day. :3 Might get to some more interactions next time, or I might jump to the presentation of the first motive. If you guys want some more downtime, though, let me know in the comments and I'll prioritize that. 
> 
> I know it might feel disjointed, too, but I think that's what usually happens in my writing until I find a pace I'm comfortable with. The kids need to find their cliques, and they need to identify the 'undesirables' for each of them. XD Once that happens, chemical reactions can begin in earnest~
> 
> Who's ready for Monokuma incentives to return, though? I betcha the kiddies aren't. :3 :3 :3


	6. Chapter 1, Part 3: Destination Despair

“Ahem! Hope’s Peak Academy’s School Trip Executive Committee has an announcement to make~! The fun time you’ve all been waiting for is about to begin! I wonder what festivities await you? … Oops, don’t want to ruin the surprise! It was a little ‘meh’ at first, but anyway, please gather at Jabberwock Park!” With the announcement made, every screen on the island flickered off.

Even though it was the middle of the night, Hajime gritted his teeth and complied. Like everyone else, he didn’t have a choice when it came to that bear and his… rules. He didn’t want to get on the bad side of those giant robots.

The sight of the small stage in front of the monument with the bomb-like object on it was peculiar, though… What was Monokuma planning now?

Hajime had goosebumps about the sudden announcement… He knew this was going to be bad. And still, he was berated for dragging his feet.

“Late again… Did you lose your nerve?” Byakuya humphed. He shook his head in exasperation. “Regardless, everyone’s now here.”

The brunet sighed internally, hanging his head and hands twitching uncomfortably. Well, the heir wasn’t **wrong** …

“It’s fine, Hinata-kun.” Chisa reassured her student with a small smile. “In a hostile situation, it’s better to comply with the small demands; don’t just pointlessly resist at every opportunity.”

Hajime smiled self-depreciatively at the attempt of cheering him up.

“Th-Thanks, Sensei…” Maybe it was common sense. That didn’t change the fact he was a coward… He came here out of fear, not steely determination like Yukizome-sensei or Togami.

As the orange-haired woman frowned and tried to think of a way to get her point across better, a derisive snort came from nearby.

“So you’re saying if Monokuma tells us to murder, it’s better to just roll over?”

Chisa whipped around in outrage, only to see Fuyuhiko standing there, appearing smug. His hands were in his pockets.

“I said the **small** demands, Kuzuryu-kun! Taking another person’s life should never be taken lightly…!”

The yakuza shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

“Hey. Don’t blame **me** for the mixed signals, teach. Who decides which demands are ‘small’ and inconsequential, anyhow? Don’t ideals and values vary from person to person?” The blond sneered, raising a hand impishly. “If someone wanted to, I’m sure they could’ve refused to come here tonight. That would’ve been their own damn prerogative.”

Kazuichi shook a fist at the yakuza in annoyance.

“But… None of us know what would happen if we ditched?! The hell, dude?!”

Fuyuhiko sneered again.

“That’s why I’m saying someone should test it out so the rest of us know what’ll happen. Is that so unreasonable?”

Mahiru placed her hands on her hips in exasperation, glaring down the yakuza.

“”Hey, wiseguy, you may talk like you’re tough, but you wouldn’t be here unless you were scared, too!”

“What?!” The yakuza whirled on the photographer, balling a hand into a fist angrily.

“I guess even a big, bad yakuza like you must’ve been scared of that monster, huh?” Mahiru retained that challenging gaze, which Fuyuhiko returned heatedly.

“What the fuck did you just say?!” He snarled, clenching his fist tighter.

Nagito held up his hands peacefully.

“Stop it, you two! Fighting amongst friends isn’t good!”

Fuyuhiko stared at the luckster like he’d grown a second head.

“What? Did you just say ‘friend’? I’m not your friend, dumbass! When did I ever become friends with you bastards?” At the questioning gazes, the yakuza huffed impatiently, bowing his head as he placed one hand on his hip. “Hmph, let me be perfectly clear… I can do it, y’know.”

Everyone stared at Fuyuhiko, floored at his aggressive stance.

“… Huh?” Teruteru voiced everyone’s clear disbelief.

“Y-You… What did you just say…?” Mahiru demanded sharply.

The yakuza impishly raised a hand again, sneering.

“Oh? You didn’t hear me? Then I’ll repeat myself just once for you. I said… I can do it.” Fuyuhiko let the weighty words dangle in the air threateningly.

Hajime frowned, brow furrowed, and tried to be the voice of reason.

“Hey, Kuzuryu, why don’t we just calm down…?”

“Don’t talk to me like we’re friends!” Fuyuhiko barked back. “I live in a completely different world from you bastards. Kill or be killed… that’s the kind of world I live in. Heh, the current rules make more sense to me than the, ‘ **play nice and get along** ’ crap.”

“If you don’t stop it right now… I’m going to get seriously angry!” Mahiru fumed, pointing at the yakuza in outrage.

“Don’t treat me like a kid, bitch!” Fuyuhiko spat back.

Peko closed her eyes calmly.

“Just stop already… This kind of fighting will not get us anywhere.

“Shut the hell up! There’s no way I’m dealing with this Kumbaya crap!” The yakuza shot her down, as well. “If any of you guys wanna die, step forward… I’ll fuckin’ kill you right now…”

Akane grinned wolfishly, raising her hands excitedly.

“Sounds fun… Gimme your best shot!”

“Wh-What’s gonna happen if you’re this easily provoked?!” Hajime yelped.

Chisa put her foot down, head bowed gravely, hair overshadowing her eyes.

“That’s **enough**! Kuzuryu-kun, I understand your feelings, but you are out of line!”

“Tch…” Fuyuhiko clicked his tongue and turned his head away from the orange-haired woman. “Why should I care about what any of you bastards think? You’re just as powerless as we are! If Monokuma’s gonna get what he wants no matter what, then I’ll just do whatever the hell I want.”

A harsh slap echoed throughout the park. The students stared in stupefied shock while the yakuza cradled his now red cheek. Chisa stared him down authoritatively, hands on her hips.

“ **I won’t let any of you die**! If everything else fails, you can believe in that, Kuzuryu-kun. No matter what anyone tries, how they tempt you… I won’t let **any** of you throw your lives away! You’re above killing! Every single one of you is. If you have doubts, worries, **I will hear you out**. Didn’t I tell you that?”

Fuyuhiko continued cradling his cheek as he stared at the woman in shock.

“Th-The hell…? Even if you say crap like that, those are just empty promises! You’re just an assistant homeroom teacher! The hell do you think you’re gonna do against these assholes running the school trip?!”

Yukizome’s arms dropped to her side as her face went from furious to calm, yet determined.

“I will put down my life for you. That’s how far I’m willing to go.” Chisa said with such conviction that Fuyuhiko clamped right up. “The moment you stop believing in your students, that’s when it’s really the end for a teacher. Even in an awful situation like this… I believe in **every one of you**. You all have the power to make it through this and return home. If there ever comes a time when your heart wavers… that’s when you come to me. Don’t think I’ll just allow you to throw your life away, Kuzuryu-kun.”

Fuyuhiko lowered his hand and turned his head away sharply, having nothing further to say in rebuttal. Byakuya crossed his arms, smirking as he closed his eyes.

“I am in complete support of Yukizome-sensei’s noble mission. In fact, I’ve already started to take steps to improve our situation, even a little… Souda, are those trackers still on schedule?”

The mechanic rubbed the back of his head, chuckling nervously.

“Y… Yeah… The devices were easy enough, and people should have ‘em by tomorrow morning. I’m just fine-tuning the main hub, so to speak. Make sure everything’s synced up properly.”

Byakuya nodded sagely. He then pointed at everyone authoritatively.

“As your Class Rep, I swear that no one shall become a victim. If you can’t bring yourself to believe in Yukizome-sensei, then take **my** word on it, as Byakuya Togami!”

While everyone had been curious about what Kazuichi had been working on, they didn’t have time to probe into it. Monokuma chose that moment to appear… in a snazzy blue suit, white shirt, and red tie.

“Um… It looked like you guys were arguing… so I wasn’t sure when to actually show up… It looks like I showed up at an awkward time!”

Everyone stared at the eccentric bear. Chiaki tilted her head.

“Um… why are you dressed like that?”

“Oh, didn’t I mention it in the recent broadcast? It’s my costume for the fun time!” The bear happily answered.

Peko made a small groan.

“Don’t tell me you are going to…”

Monokuma nodded sagely.

“That’s right! Since we’re on a tropical island, I’m here to do my two-man comedy routine!”

“Wh-Why does it matter that we’re on a tropical island?” Mikan asked with a quivering voice.

Sonia smiled politely, but you could tell it didn’t go that deep.

“But can you do a two-man comedy routine all by yourself?”

“Of course not. That’s why I brought my partner.” Monokuma said by way of explanation, before hauling out Monomi for all to see. The bunny was in her own stage costume.

“Ha-wa-wa! What is this?!” Monomi demanded.

Nekomaru picked at his nose in aggravation.

“Hmm, that figures…” He grunted.

Monokuma cleared his throat for emphasis.

“Now then, without further ado, I’m pleased to present, ‘ **Monokuma’s Side-Splitting Two-Man Comedy Show** ’!”

Monomi wilted.

“Huh? I didn’t hear anything about this! Are you telling me I have to improvise?!”

“… I’m speechless.” Tanaka deadpanned.

The stuffed animals hopped on stage. Or… well. Monokuma dragged Monomi with him.

“Helloooooo, I’m Monokuma!” The bear started them off.

“Um… I’m Monomi…” The rabbit followed him up.

“And together, we are **The Monokuma’s**!” The two of them were in sync, that time.

“Now, I know it’s sudden, but I guess I should show you my amazing mind-reading abilities~!” Monokuma continued.

“Eh? You can read minds?” Monomi wasn’t sure what to make of this.

“As practice, I’ll guess your favorite food. Hmm… Your favorite food is…” The bear trailed off, deep in thought.

“You can do it! It’s obvious what rabbits like!” Monomi encouraged him.

“Ca…” He hummed uncertainly.

“That’s right!” Monomi seemed happy enough with where this was going.

“…davers!” The bear decided randomly.

“I’d never eat a dead body!” Monomi refuted the guess.

Monokuma giggled.

“Now then… Monomi’s up next! C’mon, do a short skit or something!”

“Wh-What?! There’s no way I can do that!” Monomi spluttered.

“No worries, it’s all good. I know a technique to summon the god of Comedy!” Monokuma gushed. “Sooo… which do you think is better? Taking blood while you’re still alive, or after you’re already dead?”

“Why would you ask such a cruel question?!” Monomi demanded.

“If I’m gonna summon **the Comedeity** , then I’ll need a lot of blood.” The bear explained helpfully.

“So, a god of comedy wants blood…” Monomi deadpanned.

“Hngh! Pretty please?!” Monokuma begged with a suave tone.

“No matter how charmingly you ask, there’s no way I’ll let you take my blood!” Monomi refused.

“You’re always so quick to make a scary face, Monomi. You guys better be careful, too. Ya know, since Monomi’s actually a bad guy. She’s as bad as the first villain the hero fights in a teen manga!” Monokuma warned the students.

“They’re always the underdog!” The rabbit whined.

“Believe me, it’s a fact that Monomi’s a villain. I’ll let you all in on a secret of hers… Monomi… went out of her way to erase your memories!” It was clear the comedy routine was derailed by this point. Monokuma had adopted a deathly serious tone.

“Say what?!” Monomi gasped. “… Wait, huh?”

“You guys don’t remember how you got to this island, am I right? Well, that’s because Monomi stole your memories!” Monokuma giggled.

“Wh-What are you saying all of a sudden?!” Monomi demanded.

“But wait, there’s more! She didn’t just steal your boring memories, like how you guys got to this island. She completely took away **your memories of the years you spent at Hope’s Peak Academy**! What a shocker!” Monokuma gushed.

“Ha-wa-wa?!” Monomi was at a loss for what to say.

Monokuma breathed a sigh of relief.

“Phew… I feel great now that I’ve shared that with you. Seriously, memory plots are so old hat nowadays… Only a total hack would wait until the end of the story to reveal a clichéd twist like that!”

“P-Please stop…!” Monomi begged desperately.

“Upupu~! Wasn’t that a huge surprise? In truth, you guys aren’t freshmen students at all. You guys just thought you were because you’ve lost all your school memories! Quick, someone get a plagiarist because I feel like I’ve heard this story before~!” Monokuma teased.

“S-Seriously… This is bad in so many ways!” Monomi anxiously tittered about.

Monokuma savagely punched her in the face.

“I’m through dealing with you!”

“GYAAAAAH! His backhand is far too powerful!” Monomi wailed.

But Chisa and the students were too lost for words to respond to the end of the skit. Hajime licked his lips experimentally, but he could only manage a single syllable.

“… Huh?”

“Wh-What did he mean?” Nagito wondered.

Monokuma was already out of his suit by the time the students had regained their bearings enough to listen again.

“How was it? Was it funny? Or was the comedy too high brow for you?” Monokuma challenged them.

Byakuya scowled.

“Hey… what were you saying just now?”

“What was I saying just now…?” Monokuma tilted his head cutely. He then muffled his giggles. “Oh, you mean when I said that your **school memories** were completely stolen?”

But Monokuma’s words weren’t any more comprehensible. Hajime certainly couldn’t find the words to respond. Ibuki poked her fingers together, laughing nervously.

“Aha… hahaha… There’s no way… ‘Cause… I just entered Hope’s Peak Academy, and then I was brought to this island… right away…”

“That’s because that’s how you remember it.” Monokuma explained helpfully. “All thanks to Monomi stealing your school memories…”

“Wh-What are you saying?! That’s impossible!” Hajime spluttered.

Monokuma adorably tilted his head again.

“Man… how many years has it been since you guys first entered Hope’s Peak Academy…? I wonder what happened to your friends and family? They’re probably worried sick about you… Maybe?”

“Our school memories were stolen?! That’s ridiculous!” Nekomaru declared in a booming voice.

“That’s right! There’s no way I have memory loss!” Kazuichi pointed furiously at the bear.

Chisa, meanwhile, had gone ashen. The idea of memory loss seemed so… out there… And yet… And yet… So many things would start making sense. About the abrupt journey here. A school trip right on the “first day”… That even might explain the Steering Committee shipping her off to a remote island like this, if they’d caught on to her at any point… But still. Why send the kids, too?

Monomi really wasn’t helping her case, either…

“D-Don’t… don’t listen to what he says…” Monomi cried, paws raised in the air in alarm.

Ibuki foamed at the mouth.

“Blub-blub-blub-blub… Limit reached…”

Teruteru poked his fingers together nervously.

“I refuse to believe such a thing. Yep, everything’s okay… I don’t believe it…”

“Y-You’re lying right…? Stealing our memories… that’s a lie, right…?” Mikan asked in such a fragile tone. “You’re just trying to make fools of us, right…?”

Monokuma sharply denied the pleading ignorance.

“Nope, it’s not a lie. If it was a lie… then how do you explain this? The moment you arrived at Hope’s Peak Academy, you all experienced a **strange dizziness** …” At Hajime’s clear disbelief of having that knowledge, Monokuma giggled. “Upupu… Why, that was the **cut-off point**. Your memories beyond that point have been completely removed.”

“What the hell?!” Hajime couldn’t speak any more than that. He could only breathe raggedly and heavily.

Mikan cried out in distress.

“So… a long time has passed… since then…?” Mikan wailed.

“I-Impossible… There’s no way!” Nekomaru bellowed.

“On the contrary… Why is it impossible?” Monokuma tilted his head again.

“Whether or not it’s possible… there’s no way we can believe it.” Nagito rasped, totally at a loss.

“You just **don’t want to believe it** , right?” Monokuma accused. He rubbed the back of his head merrily. “But don’t worry… I’m a generous guy! I can give you back your memories~!”

“Huh?!” Monomi cried out in distress.

“However… there’s a catch.” Monokuma revealed.

“Don’t tell me the catch is…” Chiaki trailed off in dread.

Monokuma giggled uncontrollably.

“Upupu… figured it out yet? That’s right, you guys have to **kill each other**! That’s my bargaining point!” Monokuma laughed merrily as Monomi continued panicking. “You guys wanna know, right? You want your **school memories** returned to you, right? Then you better start killing~! A penny for your thoughts, and a murder for your memories!”

Akane growled lowly.

“Hey… Stop runnin’ your mouth.”

Monokuma tilted his head at her.

“My, my… why so angry? I’m just providing you all a motive from the bottom of my big, generous heart! Otherwise, you cowards wouldn’t get any killing done! Well, that’s not your fault. Humans are natural born cowards. They even cry after their mom squeezes ‘em out. That’s why I’m giving you a **motive**. Think of it as an excuse to commit your future crimes.”

“Stop this at once…!” Byakuya demanded haughtily. “Do you really think your delusional rambling will convince us to commit murder…?”

“I don’t even believe that memory loss crap in the first place!” Mahiru raged.

“But more than that, what you guys really don’t believe is each other, right?” Monokuma taunted. “You guys don’t know each other. Which means… None of you realize that a **traitor** is hiding among you, right?”

“… Huh?” Hajime was caught off-guard again, as was everyone else.

“Hey, why are there eighteen of you?” Monokuma asked, breathing another sigh of relief at getting something else off his chest. “If **a total of sixteen students and one teacher** from Hope’s Peak Academy were arranged to come to this island… That’s right! There’s probably a **traitor** I don’t even know about hiding among the group! … Just kidding.”

Fuyuhiko gritted his teeth angrily.

“Wh-What are you saying… all this shit about traitors doesn’t make any sense!”

“… It’s obviously nonsense.” Peko agreed.

“For real, you guys… how can you be so sure?” Monokuma taunted again. “You guys don’t know anything about each other. You don’t know each other’s true natures. That’s why, if one of you is planning to kill someone, it’s impossible for any of you to know. Even so… if there really is a **traitor** , isn’t that gosh darn awful? Pretending to be your ally and tricking you guys… It makes sense for someone like that to get killed, right? C’mon, make the preemptive strike! It’s first come, first served and the winner takes all! If you want to survive, you gotta find that person before they find you… Aaaaahahaha~!”

They all stood there silently for what seemed like an eternity, long after Monokuma had departed with boisterous laughter. None of them knew what to believe and not to believe… It was all so outrageous, outlandish, brutal, mad… The mere possibility of it being all true was… It entranced them.

“Is it true…? Is there really a traitor among us…?” Mikan wondered quietly. She covered up her head with her arms in a panic. “Ah! It’s not me, by the way! I know I may look suspicious but… it’s not me!”

“Who is it?!” Nekomaru bellowed. “Hurry up and show yourself! You’re only making things worse for you by staying silent!”

Byakuya huffed exasperatedly.

“… Just stop. There’s no way there’s a traitor. There’s no way… It’s pointless to even discuss something so foolish.” He crossed his arms, scowling fiercely.

“That’s right… I don’t believe it…” Teruteru chanted to himself. “Because there’s no way I can believe it… There’s no reason in the first place to believe it…”

“Monomi… you would know.” Peko homed in on the plushy that remained amongst the group.

“Huh?!” The rabbit exclaimed in distress.

“Is what Monokuma said true? About our memory loss… and about the traitor…?” Peko stressed.

Monomi nervously tittered about.

“Um… I mean… Everyone needs to look to the **future** … That’s why… you shouldn’t look back to the past… Keep your eyes fixed upon the **future**. L-Let’s do our very best!” With that, Monomi beat a hasty retreat.

Everyone stared after the clearly suspicious rabbit.

“Aww, she ran away!” Akane groaned.

“Hmph, how ridiculous…” Fuyuhiko grunted. “Memory loss… a traitor… It’s completely fictional… I can’t deal with this bullshit, dumbass!”

Hajime found himself agreeing wholeheartedly with that sentiment. It was completely different from the reality that he himself lived in… But as they were all processing this, the nighttime announcement rang out like normal. After it taunted them…

“H-Hey… what should we do?” Chiaki asked, tilting her head.

“It’s better if we call it a night here.” Byakuya decided. “We should get some sleep… and try to keep our minds calm.”

“I guess… you’re right.” Chiaki murmured, pulling her kitty hoodie over her head.

“Just so you all know… Do not think about unnecessary things. This is your leader’s order. Tomorrow morning… let’s meet at the restaurant after Monokuma’s morning announcement.”

Sonia rubbed her arm, sighing.

“How troubling… I think the saying goes, ‘I am frightened so stiff…’”

“I am pretty stiff right now, too…” Teruteru agreed happily… with a perverted grin…

“That’s… not how that saying goes…” Kazuichi scratched his cheek sheepishly. “B-But that’s not her fault! She’s a foreigner, after all…”

No one else bothered correcting the Princess or commenting in general. They just… scattered for the evening. Chisa, who had gone quiet, stiffly moved to return to her own cottage. She was frowning and deep in thought.

If she had learned anything from this nonsensical chain of events… She would be needing to be more on her game. Kuzuryu-kun demonstrated the kids could get distracted with thoughts of killing, even if they took it lightly and didn’t consider all the ramifications. Monokuma was most definitely going to use that confusion and incite murder.

Another thing was that Monomi would definitely need closer scrutiny. Well-intentioned or not, Monomi had clearly done **something** to them to steal away portions of their lives. Whether that was the entirety of their lives at Hope’s Peak, or whether the kids were still on course for graduation… that remained to be seen. But this amnesia thing really did worry her, regardless. How much time had passed? What were Kyosuke and Juzo doing? Were they searching for her? What about Hope’s Peak itself? Were they still on track for improving the academy, or were they compromised and in danger? **Why were the kids here with her**? Chisa had no problem looking after an entire class, but if this fiasco was related to the Steering Committee in any way, then they should be isolating and punishing **her** , not the students.

A cold chill went down Chisa’s spine.

Did… Did she bring **children** into her operation of spying on Hope’s Peak? Certainly, they were Ultimates and just a few years younger than her… But that was simply inexcusable. She… She refused to believe that she had ever grown that complacent and misguided. Not only was it dangerous, but it threw away their futures if Kyosuke’s vision was ever compromised. Chisa had no problems dying for the man herself, but asking others to do the same, especially children, crossed the line.

So… the children’s presence was still a mystery. Setting all that and the memory loss aside, there was still the issue of a… traitor. That actually did line up with her own confusion from earlier about the number of students, because she could have sworn there hadn’t been seventeen names brought up in the meetings with Kirigiri-san and Kizakura-san. But even if that were the case… Should she really get caught up in Monokuma’s pace?

How about a different possibility? Maybe there really **was** a ‘traitor’. Planted by Monomi to watch over the students. If nothing else, that made the idea of a traitor easier to swallow. Because before Monokuma showed up, Monomi hadn’t been doing anything wrong; she just wanted everyone to enjoy a blissful, tropical life. Certainly, the memory loss was disturbing – that would need an explanation. But at the very least, it kept Monomi as an enemy of Monokuma, and not a cohort.

An enemy of your enemy was not necessarily your ally… But they could have different, non-sinister goals in mind. And Chisa… she needed something like that to believe in. A silver lining to this dismal situation.

Because pressure was building up… And she was feverishly hoping and praying that it wasn’t building up to **murder** , of all things… Once it started, it was never going to end. And she wanted these kids to **live** …

_‘… I hope you’re alright, Kyosuke… wherever you are…’_

~*~

Mukuro sighed morosely as she returned to her cabin, closing the door behind her and locking it. Nagito had dismissed her for the evening, saying that he would be fine… She wanted to believe that. He had good luck, too – not just bad luck. But the others were not in a sane state of mind right now… any of them could snap from the tension and terror.

Still… Nagito caught her watching his cabin, and told her off. So… she was dismissed for the night. Now she was forced to deal with… this.

Mukuro deadpanned at the uninvited guest in her cottage.

“What are you doing here?” The soldier barked, keeping all of her senses on high alert. Monokuma just kept his back to her, looking around the room so casually.

“Hmmm… This really is depressing. You’re the Ultimate Soldier, but they didn’t give you bazookas or grenade launchers?!” Monokuma turned around to face her and hung his head, sighing miserably. “Not even a Gatling gun to spice things up! So barbaric~! Do they expect you to just… live off the land, sharpening sticks to use as arrows?! I-I-I’m positively **appalled**!”

Mukuro growled impatiently, fingers twitching toward her survival knife.

“What. Are you. Doing here…?” The soldier grated out.

Monokuma let out another miserable sigh, stance unchanging.

“… Nothin’? Geez, tough crowd. I was thinkin’ of you, y’know. When I made that two-man comedy act. I was totally tempted to drag you into it, just like the good old days… But then I remembered, you don’t have a funny bone in your entire body. So. I settled for Monomi.”

Mukuro arched an eyebrow suspiciously.

“Me…? Why would I ever associate with you?”

Monokuma sweated profusely as he poked his paws together ‘nervously’.

“G-Gasp~! This adorable face doesn’t ring **any** bells for you? Very distant school bells? Not even a tingle?” At the firm shake of her head, Monokuma stood up straight suddenly. “Oh. Oh, this won’t do. Mm-mm. What did you do to make them bleach your brain **that** badly? Did you screw up? **Again**? *siiigh* I’m gonna hafta renew my neurosurgeon license. Doctor Killgood, back in business. This just… This just **sucks**! I can already tell I’m gonna be workin’ on you for **a while**.”

Mukuro gripped the handle of her knife, but didn’t draw it out yet.

“As if I would ever let you anywhere near **my** brain…” The soldier growled lowly.

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“A bit late for that, I’m afraid~! But don’t you worry about a **thing**. I’m gonna take better care of you than **she** ever did! I’m gonna be your onii-chan~! We’ll go for romantic walks on the beach, play board games, shoot people in the face… It’ll be great~! We’ll even string up that Hope fanboy and shove a depth charge down his fucking Hope~… er… his throat, I mean. Oops. Now which Hope fanboy was that again? I… I kinda forgot. If it was your boytoy, I’m sorrrrrrrryyyyyy~! I just couldn’t help myself~!”

Monokuma didn’t seem all that surprised when Mukuro had him pinned down on the floor in the next moment. He just stared up at her with that permanently grinning face of his.

“Are you going to be quiet now?” Mukuro asked, eyes coldly glaring down at the bear as she kept her foot firmly planted on his stomach. “You’d better be. Because I don’t care how many spares you have, or how many robots you have lying in the wings. I won’t stop until every strand of cotton is torn to shreds, if you lay one finger on Komaeda-kun…”

The bear guffawed at the threat that didn’t sound idle.

“You really did follow your instincts, didn’t you…? Even though they were way off course, the disturbing, spine-tingling similarities were enough to make ya go, ‘I must protect this Creepazoid at all costs’~!”

“ **Don’t** call him a creep…!” The soldier hissed darkly, dangerously close to just stabbing the bear in the face and being done with him. “You don’t even **know** Komaeda-kun!”

“And you do?” Monokuma challenged her in return, not threatened in the least. “Put your money where your mouth is, short-trooper. Look me in the eye, and **tell** me you haven’t had alarm bells going off in your head – telling you that there’s more to his nice, chummy interactions than meets the eye!”

Mukuro remained stubbornly silent at that. The hand holding her knife quivered in a quiet rage, and her heel grinded into the bear in aggravation. Monokuma giggled tauntingly.

“ **Something** about him isn’t **right** , and you know it~! You’ve got the right puzzle pieces, but they’re just not **clicking** because you’re assembling them the wrong way! It’s fine~! I do it all the time when I’m bored with a jigsaw puzzle.” The bear paused thoughtfully. “Though I typically like to use chopped up bodies as ‘jigsaw puzzles’, so…”

“There is nothing **wrong** with Komaeda-kun…!” Mukuro hissed, narrowing her eyes.

Monokuma deadpanned, unimpressed.

“You and I both know that’s one sick puppy, you’re just lying to yourself to live out your deluded fantasy… And we both know that I wasn’t even talking about Komaeda-kun’s sanity, or lack thereof, when I said something was **off**. If you look deep in your heart, you’ll realize what’s wrong~…”

“…” Mukuro **glared**.

The bear shrugged lazily, despite still being pinned.

“Fine, fine, be obstinate. I’ll wait. I’ve got all the time in the world~…” Monokuma tilted his head slightly. “I’m not even here to talk about that nutcase, anyway. How’d you let me go on a tangent like that?! What kinda neechan are you?”

All the wrath melted out of Mukuro at that single word. Her mouth hung open as she echoed it hollowly.

“N… nee… chan…”

… Why did that single word feel so ominous? The soldier couldn’t even decipher the feelings rolling around in her gut. They… didn’t make her feel pleasant at all…

“That’s right~!” Monokuma chirped. “Monomi went a step further when she took **your** memories away. You didn’t just forget your **school memories** … You forgot your precious **imouto** ~! Though, I can’t really blame that stupid rabbit. I’d be jealous, too, if I had an amazing imouto like that~!”

“I… I have family…?” Mukuro asked faintly, her body running on autopilot as she removed her foot and allowed Monokuma to get up. The bear dusted himself off casually.

“I’m afraid I’m not allowed to say anything more without incurring the wrath of Spoiler Haters… But yes~! You have **family**! … Or did. I wonder what that means…?” Monokuma tilted his head curiously, before departing abruptly.

… It’s not like he had to stick around, though. Mukuro was lost in her own little world…

~*~

Walking into the restaurant the next morning felt miserable… Hajime was the fourth person to arrive, just after Nekomaru, Sonia, and Teruteru. The others were quick to trickle in after him, however. Once they were all present, Byakuya crossed his arms and looked around sternly. To Hajime’s confusion, Chisa just nodded and flashed a thumb’s-up at the heir.

“… Is everyone here?”

Chiaki peered around the room.

“Huh? It seems Kuzuryu-kun is not here yet…”

Saionji snickered.

“Hehe, maybe he already got killed…”

Ibuki covered her face in terror.

“GYAAAH! Dead bodies already?!”

Peko sighed patiently.

“Don’t go killing people off… I saw him outside earlier. However, he told me he would not be joining us this morning.”

“Why does he have to act like a lone wolf at a time like this…?” Mahiru groaned in annoyance.

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head, laughing nervously.

“Could he… Is he thinking up a plan to kill someone by himself…?”

“Souda! You should not doubt your friend!” Sonia berated the mechanic, who scrabbled to defend his position.

“Well, he’s a yakuza, isn’t he? Do you understand what that means? He’s part of the Japanese mafia!”

Togami pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

“I presume he’s the kind of person who would not come even if we summoned him. I guess it can’t be helped… We should just talk among ourselves. Someone can fill him in later.”

“Talk…?” Hajime echoed in confusion. “What are we going to talk about?”

Byakuya chuckled, closing his eyes.

“Rejoice… I have decided to throw a party tonight.”

“Huh?” Hajime didn’t understand the decision.

“A p-party…?” Mikan yelped.

Byakuya just continued smirking.

“That’s right. A huge party that will last from sundown to sunrise.” The heir confirmed.

“Party ‘til the sun comes up?!” Ibuki seemed thrilled by the idea.

Byakuya pointed authoritatively at everyone.

“Just so we’re clear, I will not allow any absences. Your attendance at this party is absolutely mandatory.”

Kazuichi massaged his forehead in aggravation.

“H-Hey… now’s not the time to talk about stuff… like partying!”

“On the contrary… there is no better time than this…” Byakuya refuted the mechanic.

“But still… we shouldn’t really be partying…” Mahiru trailed off dejectedly.

Nagito rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Um, hold on… I agree with Togami… It doesn’t do us any good to stay bummed out like this…” He raised an index finger astutely. “In fact, because of the situation we’re in, it’s probably best if we all strengthen our friendships with one another. That’s what you thought too, right? That’s why you want to throw a party.”

Byakuya scoffed.

“It doesn’t matter why I’m doing it… Anyway… It is of **vital importance** that we all stay in one place tonight.”

“… You say that with such significance.” Tanaka mused, crossing his arms and gave the heir a discerning glare. He received one in return.

“It’s decided! We’re having ourselves a party!” Byakuya ignored any suspicion thrown his way.

“E-Even so… I’m not sure it needs to last all night…” Mikan nervously tapped her fingers together.

“If I thought that, I would have made that clear from the beginning.” Byakuya aggressively defended his terms for the party.

“I-I-I’m terribly sorry!” Mikan shielded her face with her arms again. “I’m so, so sorry for trying to meddle with your plan!”

“It’s important to be flexible in situations like this…” Nekomaru mused. “Perhaps a diversion from all this is just what we need.”

“Then let’s party~!” Akane grinned, ear to ear.

Teruteru perked up.

“Ah, in that case, I’ll put my amazing cooking skills on display for you guys.”

“Where is the party going to be held?” Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Would this restaurant be okay?”

Byakuya raised a finger to his temple shrewdly.

“No, this won’t do… We need a location that’s impervious to interference from outsiders. A place even Monokuma cannot enter… What we need is an **enclosed space**.”

“… An enclosed space?” Chiaki tilted her head.

“If the restaurant won’t do, then neither will the lobby…” Tanaka pointed out. “That’s not nearly enclosed enough.”

“Nor will the cottages…” Sonia mused. “With so many people, we would all be pressed up against each other.”

“But if you want to be pressed up against each other, then clearly a cottage is the best choice!” Teruteru chipped in with a perverted grin. His nose started to bleed a little. “Pressing up against ladies… without sneaking aboard the women-only train in drag… I feel so lucky.”

Kazuichi rolled his eyes scratching his cheek.

“I can’t believe how comfortable you are with saying your perverted thoughts out loud…”

Teruteru giggled merrily.

“Mmhmhm~! I may be a pervert, but I’m the kind of pervert everybody likes~!”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

“Your confidence is seriously impressive…”

Nagito raised an index finger astutely.

“Then… how about that **old-looking building** near this hotel?”

“That rundown place…?” Chiaki tilted her head curiously.

Nagito laughed lightly, giving a carefree wave.

“Yeah, but if we do our best to clean it, I think it’d be perfect. Plus, it’s basically the only place that meets our needs for an enclosed space, right?”

Peko frowned thoughtfully.

“Indeed. However, Monomi has forbidden us from entering that old place. As I recall… it’s in the middle being renovated.”

Monomi chose that moment to appear excitedly.

“I have heard your conversation! Heard it all with my very own ears~! Ahem! I have good ears! Cuz I’m a rabbit!”

“Oh, so you use your ears, that’s strange…” Byakuya scowled at the rabbit.

“Huh?!” The rabbit yelped.

“Then what is the reason for the surveillance cameras? Are they for Monokuma’s eyes only?”

Monomi wilted, mushrooms growing out of her head.

“Ah, she looks so disappointed!” Ibuki pointed out.

“Well, it is of no concern… We can settle that issue another time…” Byakuya pointed at the rabbit. “Regarding the old building! You came to tell us something about it, right?!”

Monomi nodded happily.

“Yes, if it strengthens everyone’s bonds with each other, then I will not hesitate to cooperate. So in that case, I will allow you to enter the old building! I’ll cooperate so we can all party together~!”

Saionji snorted disdainfully.

“Together? That’s not gonna happen ‘cause you’re **so** disgusting~… Do yourself a favor and stay away from mirrors. You’ll be grossed out by what you see.”

“Ugh… Your kind words make me want to cry…” Monomi departed tearfully.

“Um… So we’re all good with the old building?” Mahiru asked, not really sure how to respond to any of that. “Then what about the preparations? If it’s in the middle of a renovation, don’t we need to clean it first?”

Sonia gushed excitedly.

“I have never done the dirty work known as ‘cleaning’ before. I am excited to finally experience it!”

Kazuichi got riled up at that.

“No way! There’s no way we can dirty our dear Princess’s hands!”

“Nyeeeh, I don’t wanna do it, either!” Saionji pursed her lips.

Nekomaru picked at his nose in boredom.

“What… Nobody’s going to do it…?”

Nagito grinned brightly and waved his hand again gleefully.

“In that case, why don’t we decide on a random drawing?” He produced some sticks he carried around in his pocket.

“A random drawing…?” Hajime stared down at the sticks incredulously.

“To be honest, I already prepared a drawing because I assumed something like this would happen. Whoever draws the chopstick with the red mark on it will be in charge of cleaning, okay? Does that sound fair?” Nagito’s grin was so innocent… Hajime didn’t like the feeling it might’ve been rigged, and he’d end up on cleaning duty.

Nagito wouldn’t do that… right…?

“Well then, let us entrust our destinies to the whims of this drawing!” Tanaka agreed to the proposal.

And that’s when Chisa struck, walking up behind the luckster, placing a hand on his shoulder, giving a closed-eyes grin of her own.

“That won’t be necessary, Komaeda-kun… As the former Ultimate Housekeeper, I’ll get that place cleaned up in a jiffy!” She opened her eyes and glanced around the restaurant before her eyes landed on two individuals. “That said… it’d be a shame to turn down help when offered… Ikusaba! Nevermind! You’re going to be my little helpers~!”

Sonia’s eyes sparkled in merriment at the appointed task, while Mukuro stared unblinkingly at the orange-haired woman. This felt… coordinated. But at the same time, it didn’t. If this was staged, what purpose was it for?

… And why turn down Komaeda-kun’s suggestion of a drawing? It seemed harmless.

“Ah, and no one else is allowed inside the old building while we’re preparing it…” Chisa tacked on at the end, patting Nagito’s shoulder as he chuckled lightheartedly.

Mukuro narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Definitely planned. But why?

“I’ll handle the cooking.” Teruteru reiterated his earlier remark. “All right, first I need to prepare my ingredients, then I’ll start cooking at the old building. I, Teruteru Hanamura, will go all-out! I will prepare **the world’s tastiest dishes** for you all~!”

Peko bowed her head and nodded stoically.

“Then I just need to pass along the party details to Kuzuryu.”

“Let’s go about our business then. **After Monokuma’s nightly announcement** , we’ll meet at the **old building**.” Byakuya instructed them all. “Last order of business: Souda, if you would.”

The mechanic rubbed the back of his head and giggled nervously as he started handing out small devices to his befuddled classmates. Hajime looked down at his, finding that it resembled a phone, but it didn’t **do** anything when he fiddled with it…

“What the heck are these?” The brunet wondered aloud. Byakuya was kind enough to elaborate as he held up what appeared to be a tablet with blinking lights displayed on it.

“We are all navigating uncharted waters here, unsure of if we can trust each other… As such, I have deemed it prudent to know your positions at **all times**. These GPS trackers will help fulfill my promise to you to not allow anyone become a victim. Cooperate and keep these with you, especially when you leave your cottages. That way, if anyone is in danger or missing, **we will find you** **and save you** , if it comes to that.”

Mahiru looked down at the device with an uncertain frown.

“I dunno… It seems like an invasion of privacy. What if we have a promise to keep, and need a meeting to be secret?”

Byakuya huffed exasperatedly. The photographer definitely liked challenging his authority…

“What’s more important? A promise or someone’s life?” The heir raised a finger to his temple astutely. “Ultimately, it is your decision to cooperate or not. But I assure you – if we all cooperate with these ‘pointless’ safety measures, then we will all make it out of here without a single fatality. I vow that on the Togami name.”

Ibuki raised her hand and waved it in the air.

“Ibuki has a question~!”

Byakuya arched an eyebrow at the overexcited musician.

“Yes?”

“Why do these look like phones?” She tilted her head curiously, clasping her hands behind her back.

Byakuya went quiet at that. Kazuichi scratched his cheek and chuckled nervously.

“W-Well… He kinda wants to **make** these phones, later. When we have the parts. I just followed what **he** told me to do…!” The mechanic pointed at the heir heatedly.

Byakuya huffed, crossing his arms and looking off to the side in aggravation.

“Souda, I will reveal these safety measures at their appointed time, and not a moment before… Do not make me lecture you on this. I assure you, everything I do has a reason.”

As Kazuichi grumbled and backed down, Hajime stared down at the device in his hand curiously.

_‘A phone, huh…?’_

That would definitely be a nice thing to have… Too bad the coverage would probably be limited to Jabberwock Island, though…

The stuff about the party was interesting, too. Even if he didn’t understand the reasoning behind the sudden party, at least it’d be good to unwind and not worry about everything…

… Oh. And he avoided cleaning duty. Dodged a bullet on that one.

Komaeda looked a little put out, though… Not that Haime could understand wy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... So I decided to steamroll ahead, this week. XD I could have done more of the FTE's for the first day, but it did feel like we were dragging our heels if I did... I'll double up when we've got the motive laid out or something's happened, but when it's in the beginning like this, I felt it more prudent to press on... 
> 
> People are here for the Despairrrr~ Not Mikan traumatizing Hiyoko with Blissey. :3 :3 :3 
> 
> But we'll definitely get more FTE's on the second day here. I might keep it limited to one chapter, I just wanted to lay the familiar groundwork here. Killing = Memories returned (... Maybe not right away). A dirty, rotten traitor~ A party... Are we having fun imagining the possibilities yet? I laid some hints for some of the differences that will occur. :3 Are we ready for Ultimate Housekeeper talent to be engaged? XD
> 
> Just what will Hope Fanboy do, though? Hmm. :3


	7. Chapter 1, Part 4: Destination Despair

Nagito rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he listened to Ibuki happily chat his ear off. They were outside the ranch, since that’s where the musician had stumbled into him on one of her… runs.

“… And that’s why Ibuki’s a little bummed she can’t perform at Byakuya-chan’s party! Ibuki has the guitar, but not nearly enough fire or loudspeakers! Monomi says we might get that stuff later, so Ibuki wants the other islands opened already…” The musician whined and kicked at the dirt.

The luckster nodded slowly as he listened with half an ear.

“It truly is a shame, Mioda-san… It’s as if Monokuma and Monomi are conspiring to limit your talent! How can you hope to rise to your full star potential without the necessary equipment? Such a waste…” Any of the other students would have been perturbed by the amount of “fire” Ibuki preferred to have during her shows, but not Nagito. Nagito was open to a lot of things related to Ultimate talents…

Even trifling things like fire hazards didn’t faze him. As long as Mioda-san was happy…

Ibuki perked up, despite the dreary atmosphere.

“Well, a party’s still a party! Teruteru-chan’s a creep, but his food’s supposed to be tasty! And! And! Byakuya-chan probably has fun games we can play! Like Twister~… Karaoke~… Eat-Until-You-Puke contests~!”

Nagito chuckled nervously as he held up his hands peacefully.

“I… hope it doesn’t get to the point you **actually** puke… Eating should be pleasant for everybody…”

Ibuki wasn’t listening to the luckster, however.

“Wish we didn’t have to be inside, though! We totally have the stuff we need to throw a festival~! The supermarket’s chockful of festival goodies!”

Nagito seemed to perk up.

“Oh? Like what kind of stuff?”

Ibuki giggled cheerfully as she flounced about.

“Kyahahaha! Yukatas, for one~! And festival masks~! Giant teddy bears and other stuff that could be prizes for winning games~!” The musician crossed her arms and grinned ear-to-ear smugly as she nodded sagely. “They even have fireworks~! Clearly the defining feature and best part to **any** festival~!”

Nagito’s arms dropped to his side as his face abruptly went blank.

“…”

Ibuki tilted her head curiously.

“What’s the matter? Did I break Komaeda-chan’s brain?”

After several awkward moments of silence, the luckster chuckled nervously and held up his hands again peacefully.

“A-Ah… I’m sorry, Mioda-san. Your enthusiasm and admiration of festivals… inspired me. It would be truly splendid if we could throw a festival during our stay here on Jabberwock Island! The supermarket sounds amazing, if it has all the materials we need for that…”

Ibuki bobbed her head up and down vigorously in agreement.

“Ibuki’s especially happy about the yukatas! They look really well made~!”

“… I’m sure they are.” Nagito gave a small smile.

“I bet Nanami-chan would be happy with the toy guns they have for shooting games~! Kuzuryu-chan and Ikusaba-chan, too~!” Ibuki chirped obliviously.

Nagito crossed his arms, grin widening.

“What about Nidai-kun and Owari-san? Or one better – how would Hinata-kun be able to unwind? He’s so jittery and tense~…”

Ibuki gasped, flailing her arms rapidly.

“You’re right…! Hinata-chan needs the yukata the most~! Sorry, Komaeda-chan, but Ibuki’s gotta go measure Hinata-chan!” Without another word, the musician sped off into the distance.

Nagito chuckled warmly at the sight. So full of energy and vigor, that one…

“Festival, huh…?” He was going to need to talk with a certain bear about some particular matters very soon.

~*~

“… I still do not understand why my presence is required.” Peko intoned flatly, standing in the dojo with the two athletes of the class. The Ultimate Team Manager belted out a laugh.

“I told ya! You’re one of the most disciplined people on the island! One of the most disciplined people I’ve ever met in my life, actually.” The coach picked at his nose shamelessly. “I honestly wanted to gauge your skills at some point… The fact you’re perfect for what I need done with Akane here, though, that kinda bumped up the timetable on approaching you.”

Peko’s hawklike gaze veered over to the gymnast, who was crudely picking at her ear in boredom.

“So, you want me to spar with the two of you? Even if we go one at a time, don’t you think that’s rather unfair to have me face the both of you?” The swordswoman demanded guardedly. Nidai held up his hands peacefully.

“Whoa there, easy! I know I probably could have explained that better, but we’re not gonna fight. With a party happening tonight, I don’t want either of you injured or to stress your bodies to the point you can’t enjoy yourselves!”

Akane groaned in disappointment.

“Whaaat?! I thought that was the whole point of asking Pekoyama to train! Racing Mioda yesterday was fine ‘n all, but I wanna see how Pekoyama brawls!”

Peko’s hand instantly went for the bamboo sword on her back. Akane didn’t seem like she would strike right that moment, but it would behoove her to be ready to defend herself. The gymnast appeared to be rather carefree and… whimsical. She could change her mind at a moment’s notice.

Nekomaru placed his hands on his hips, sending the gymnast a reproving stare.

“That’s your problem, Owari! You jump straight to brawling! Training doesn’t equate to that. I can understand wanting to test yourself against others, but where’s it gotten you so far? Against me? Ikusaba? Even Mioda? You want to repeat those losses so soon?”

Akane deflated as she grunted.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t kick Pekoyama’s ass…” The brunette seemed oblivious to the affronted glare Pekoyama shot her way for that comment. “And ‘sides, doesn’t Mioda get better at running by just… doing it?”

Nidai shook his head sagely, crossing his arms.

“Mioda’s not an athlete, right? She’s got spirit, but she’s a musician, and you’re a gymnast! Different career paths have different potentials! I figured maybe Mioda would inspire you to throw yourself into training with everything ya got, but you’re still being half-assed about it. So, I decided to try a different tac and have Pekoyama give you some pointers.”

A brief, tense silence fell over the trio as they awaited Akane’s response to the coach’s words. Peko’s grip on the bamboo sword relaxed as the gymnast resumed picking at her ear.

“You keep sayin’ I’m half-assing everything, but I still did all the track and field stuff my old Coach wanted me to do… Well, the stuff that mattered, I guess. If I lost, I lost. I’d just do better next time, I guess.”

Nidai sternly extended a finger toward the gymnast, giving her a fierce scowl.

“That! That right there’s why you’re half-assed! Don’t you get upset when you lose a match?! If you’re not invested, you’re never gonna reach your full potential as an athlete…!”

Akane lazily placed a hand on her hip, tilting her head.

“So you’re sayin’ I should get hung up on winnin’? I mean, yeah, it sucks when I lose. But I’m not scared or pissed or nothin’.”

Peko crossed her arms, answering in place of the Ultimate Team Manager.

“No. He’s saying you lack a drive, a purpose. That **is** detrimental for any warrior or athlete. I see now why Nidai is troubled with your performance.”

Akane cocked her head in confusion before puffing out her chest in determination.

“What are you sayin’?! When I brawl, I always aim to win! Fighting’s my passion!!!”

“No. At best it is a pastime, a **hobby** for you.” Pekoyama fired back, narrowing her gaze in scrutiny. “If you wish to get better, to overcome opponents, then you must learn from every loss. Celebrate in victory, but keep in mind your weaknesses and what you can improve on. The key is that losses are not meant to be obsessed over… yet they are still significant. You must care. Because a loss very well could mean the end of your life… or the life of someone you are sworn to protect.”

Another brief silence fell over the trio as they absorbed the swordswoman’s words. The silver-haired girl pushed a strand of hair out of her face carefully.

“My apologies. I seem to have overstepped my bounds as a… consultant. I merely wished to stress… that Nidai has a point about your attitude, Owari. You are too lazy and carefree.”

Nekomaru blinked owlishly as he returned to reality. He held up his hands peacefully.

“No, no! You did great! This is **exactly** the kind of stuff Owari needs to hear. I’ve been trying to get it into her head for the past couple of days, but maybe hearing it from a different perspective like that will…” The coach trailed off thoughtfully. “Well, point is. I was caught off-guard by the intensity, but I agree a hundred percent!”

“… If you insist.” Pekoyama allowed a stiff half-bow at the praise. Her gaze, as well as Nidai’s, turned to Owari who hadn’t said a word for the past few moments.

“A loss could mean the end of my life…?” Akane muttered, still a bit stunned. “Or the Old Man’s life?”

Nekomaru rubbed the back of his head and belted out a laugh.

“Well, even if you lose, I promise that even if I’m in danger, I’ll protect us both! That’s what teamwork is for! We cover each other’s weaknesses.” He crossed his arms and frowned thoughtfully. “But now do you see? A loss can mean something. Not just life-or-death, even a game during a season can mean you make it to the play-offs or don’t. A woman with a passionate fighting spirit like yours, I figured you’d have learned that by now. Seriously, if you’re gonna do something, own it! Give it **9000%**!!!”

Akane roared in determination, chest puffing out again.

“ **I’ll give over 9000%**!!! Alright, what else ya got for me, Pekoyama?! I’m ready to **train**!!!”

Peko eyed the two athletes with a trace of wariness. While she wasn’t against disclosing her professional opinion as a fighter, she knew that if she got too involved, it could prove… troublesome, later. She’d already pegged these two as a fearsome combo that could cover each other’s weaknesses, but now she was actually… helping them.

… She wished the Young Master was here to order her, one way or the other. She was his Sword, meant to have no feelings or thoughts of her own. Peko knew that her automatic response should be to excuse herself before she assisted a potential threat to her Young Master too much…

Yet as a classmate… she did feel an obligation to be professionally courteous. And the both of them did… respect… her, took her words to heart. This did not… stir up unnecessary feelings. But out of fellow respect for their warrior spirit, she would indulge them.

… And hopefully, this would not backfire on her, later.

~*~

Hajime wandered aimlessly down to the hotel’s lobby, after breakfast. It’s not like Komaeda’s polite decline to hang out had killed all of his possible plans for the day… Or Ikusaba’s absence, for that matter. He could understand if they had other stuff to do.

… This did put him in a bit of a small predicament, though. He hardly knew the rest of his classmates, and he was a bit nervous about possibly running into the more intense ones… Maybe this was a good thing, though. He needed to get to know the other students at some point, and he shouldn’t come to depend on Komaeda and Ikusaba – not to the point of overdoing it, anyway. Hajime barely knew them, too.

And that’s how Hajime found himself parked in front of one of the gaming tables. Not because Chiaki or anyone else was there, but because he just… didn’t know who to seek out. Yukizome-sensei, Nevermind, Ikusaba, Hanamura, and Komaeda were automatically off the table because he didn’t want to bug them while they were setting up the party and doing other things. He wasn’t about to race and find Nidai or Owari, either. And Kuzuryu probably would snuff him if he approached…

That left… just about half the class left? Hajime supposed he could work with that. He just needed to decide who to approach.

“You play Gala Omega?”

Hajime nearly jumped out of his skin at the voice he wasn’t expecting, coming from behind him. He whipped around in the seat to see Chiaki leaning over his shoulder, peering at the gaming table he was sitting at. Staring down at the table, he indeed registered it was that classic game. He had to admit, not too many people that he knew played it…

Yet he had no shame admitting that he liked it.

“Y-Yeah… I-I New Game Plus’d it five times in a row, once…”

He was not expecting what came next.

“S-Seriously?!” The gamer was immediately at his side, and up in his face. It was… the first time he’d seen her so pumped about something…

Hajime threw up his hands peacefully, feeling himself sweating a little as he grinned nervously.

“C-Cross my heart!”

Chiaki turned to the table slightly, giving a fond smile that warmed Hajime’s heart.

“I know how tough that is… I did ten in a row, once.”

“That… that blows mine out of the water.” The brunet muttered, though not with any bitterness or jealousy. The girl had introduced herself as the Ultimate Gamer; it was only natural that she’d be a million times better at any game than he would ever be.

“It’s a classic. There’s nothing else like it in the whole genre!” Chiaki gushed, nodding faintly, eyes still on the table. “I’ve just never met someone who can play it as much as me, before… Sometime, I wanna see your very best run, okay?”

Hajime found himself nodding faintly in agreement. It’s not like he could turn her down when she was so… **happy**. And to be fair, Gala Omega was one of his favorites, too. One that he hadn’t touched for a while, but he was with her one hundred percent on it being a classic.

“H-Hey… what are you…?” Hajime muttered as Chiaki sat across from him at the same table, engaging what seemed to be multiplayer. The gamer lifted and tilted her head curiously at the brunet.

“You don’t have to focus on that ‘best run’ thing right now… I just wanted to play with you. Is that okay?”

Hajime scratched his head sheepishly.

“Well… Y-Yeah, I guess that’s fine. Just… I hope I won’t drag you down, too much. I’m not that great at video games… and it’s actually been a while since I played Gala Omega, so, I’m definitely more than a bit rusty…”

Chiaki shrugged.

“Doesn’t matter if you’re good! When you’re with friends… everything feels like it’s more fun! Don’t you think so?”

… Hajime really couldn’t deny those innocent, yet earnest eyes. If he was honest, she definitely had a point. Even yesterday, when all he did was read books with Komaeda and Ikusaba, he enjoyed the time he spent doing that. They didn’t get through all the books on those shelves, but they learned plenty about Hope’s Peak and a little bit about each other.

And really, when was the last time he enjoyed a video game with a friend? Hajime… honestly struggled to dredge up that old memory. That really was… some time ago. He really must have focused on Hope’s Peak and getting a talent, if he didn’t even make time for video games with others…

“If you’ll have me, then… Sure, I’ll be your Player Two.” Hajime mustered a small, self-depreciating smile. He wanted something to do anyway, right? Well, he could think of worse ways to spend an afternoon.

The grateful smile Chiaki flashed him was so radiant and heartwarming… She really was kind.

… And cute.

~*~

Kazuichi scrunched his nose as he watched the monkeys playing around. He just didn’t get it. What Sonia-san saw in this place. … And Tanaka. He could understand that she’d never been to a zoo, since they didn’t have those in Novoselic. But man, this place reeked.

Not that he was one to talk, getting covered and being surrounded by oil all day. But what did a bunch of monkeys have that he didn’t?!

“You. Just how did you pierce the barrier to this domain?”

Kazuichi whirled around to see the breeder he’d just been musing about tapping his foot impatiently with his arms crossed.

“Eh? If you’re talking about how I got in, Monomi opened the gate. Said somethin’ about… how the place should be open to everyone.” The mechanic muttered. He had to admit, that gate was mighty impressive. It had to be sturdy to keep all these wild animals in here. Though if someone were trapped in there with the animals, they’d be up a creek, unless Tanaka or Monomi was nearby…

Monokuma definitely wouldn’t help. He’d probably just laugh and rub salt in the wound. Maybe rile up the animals, just to mess with you.

Gundham humphed, looking off to the side, with his lower face buried in his scarf.

“That undead abomination presumes too much… That barrier exists for the safety of you mortals. Why, if that foolish rabbit had done that while I was in the middle of a sensitive ritual that required the utmost delicacy…” He trailed off, grumbling bitterly. Still, the mechanic heard the first part, and he pointed at the breeder accusingly.

“H-Hey…! Our **safety**?! You mean Sonia-san **could** get hurt in here?!” Kazuichi could run away if he was ever in danger, but if the Princess was ever at risk…

Gundham clicked his tongue, glaring at the mechanic coldly.

“I said **you mortals**! The Dark Queen and I are the only ones that have dominion over this purgatory! Outsiders such as yourself should stay away!”

“I-I won’t be fooled!” Kazuichi was still pointing at the breeder accusingly. “If they’re a danger to us, they can be a danger to Sonia-san! I heard what you said yesterday! What if Sonia-san comes in here when you’re not around, and something… happens?! What’re you gonna do then?! Your little hammies aren’t gonna save her…!”

Gundham’s hand twitched violently, and he held his arm in outrage.

“What… did you… say?! Insulting not just my Four Dark Devas, but the Hell-beasts of Tartaros?! You are fortunate I do not just incinerate you on the spot, Kazuichi Souda…!”

Kazuichi placed a hand on his hip and scowled.

“Look, man! You got confidence in your skills, that’s great. But it’s like I’m saying! If they’re a danger to us, they’re a danger to Sonia-san. Sonia-san’s not gonna be an exception just ‘cause she’s your ‘Dark Queen’ or whatever. She gets along with the animals, sure, but they’re **animals**! They do whatever the heck they want. If they’re ever in a… mood… they’re gonna hurt her, y’know.”

Gundham’s arms dropped to the side as he seemed to consider the mechanic’s words, the expression on his face was blank and unreadable. He then crossed his arms, scowl forming.

“You are still a suicidal fool, insulting my subordinates… Yet… I cannot deny your words have merit, riddled with paranoia though they are. My Four Dark Devas can be quite the handful, encroaching on one another’s territories… These Hell-beasts can be even more devastating in their rampages… You do show them the proper respect in your own way.” He looked to the side, burying the lower half of his face in his scarf again. “And in the end… your fears are for the sake of the Dark Queen, not your own. Just this once, I shall spare your wretched life.”

Kazuichi ran a hand over the top of his beanie and frowned uncertainly.

“Y-Yeah… well… A-As long as you understand that much…” Admittedly, Kazuichi had to concede that he was being overly suspicious of a guy that took care of animals for a living. As jealous as he was of Tanaka, he figured the breeder wouldn’t let anything really bad happen to Sonia-san.

… But accidents happen, y’know? Better to play it safe now rather than later, after the damage has been done.

“Not so fast.” Gundham’s hawklike gaze made Kazuichi wilt a little. “As penance, you will be my disciple, this one day. We shall fix that attitude of yours, and give you a proper understanding of the beasts of Tartaros. Only then shall this incident be water under the bridge.”

Kazuichi tensed at those cryptic words.

“D-D-D-Disciple?!” He yelped. He didn’t like the sound of that at all!

Unfortunately for the mechanic, Gundham closed the gap between them and started dragging Kazuichi by the jumper, deeper into the zoo.

“Perhaps we should start your indoctrination with the wisdom of the mighty Astaroth… You would most certainly pass out from being near Gremory and Sitri… Yes, Astaroth shall do nicely as a first lesson!”

Kazuichi paled, **really** not liking where this was going. Those names meant **nothing** to him, and he was kind of nervous eventually finding out what the heck Gremory and Sitri were… Why would he pass out from being near them…? Astaroth wasn’t the snake, was it?

… **Please** don’t be the snake!

“S-Somebody **heeeeeeeelp**!” Kazuichi balled, the breeder not slowing down in the least.

… This was going to be a very long… stressful… day…

~*~

Teruteru couldn’t help staring in both wonder… and dread… at how efficiently Mukuro put down the cow’s life so casually. So easily. She also did it without ruining the meat, as Teruteru had requested…

But damn, Mukuro knew how to kill. Teruteru knew it was just an animal, and he was no stranger to seeing animals put down for the sake of human consumption… But… But still…

“Do ya feel any remorse, anymore?” The chef wondered aloud, not really thinking about the insensitivity of the question before it was too late.

Mukuro shrugged nonchalantly.

“You needed the meat for the party. It was bound to wind up on someone’s plate at some point.”

… Not that Mukuro seemed to mind how careless the chef had been with that question. If anything, she was accommodating and practical. The ease with which she killed the cow, though… like it was as simple as breathing…

Teruteru nervously combed his hair and chuckled sheepishly.

“I-I suppose so…” He’d definitely have to be careful about raiding her panty drawer, or researching her measurements. He didn’t want to be the next slab of meat on the cutting board, you know? Not… Not that he’d do anything **dirty** like that…! Oh no~… “You’re… You’re quite good at this.”

Mukuro tilted her head curiously.

“We’re Ultimates. We’re supposed to be good at what we do.” The chef cooks, the mechanic tinkers; the gamer plays games, and the photographer takes photos. So, too, did the soldier excel in her field. She wasn’t going to hide that, there’d be no point. People were already suspicious or wary of her.

… That’s why she’d rather get all these party preparations done so that she could return to her vigilant watch over the luckster. Who knew what he might’ve been getting himself into, this very moment?

Teruteru tapped his chin, frowning.

“Hey, Ikusaba… Why’d you decide to become a soldier in the first place? What drew you in?”

Mukuro’s brow furrowed.

“Why I became a soldier?” She echoed. The chef nodded in confirmation, raising clenched fists and adopting a focused expression.

“Yeah! You know, we all have our ‘origins’, so to speak! Take me, for instance. I grew up in a diner – sure, my siblings went and exploited their youth, becoming the Ultimate Male and Female Escorts… But I watched our mother cook, and became enthralled!” He then adopted a coy grin, cupping his chin. “And now I’m a first-rate chef~! I’m gonna be rich, have a trophy wife, have cooking shows about me, partner with supermarkets and fast food chains… The works! So what about you?”

Mukuro blinked owlishly. This guy seemed like a walking contradiction, from the affectionate tone he had with his family’s diner to his superficial dreams… Then again, she could hardly claim to know this guy. Maybe he was just in denial. Or something.

… It’s not like she had anything to hide, either. If he was willing to be open about his past, Mukuro saw no reason to lie to him.

“Military stuff just always interested me, I guess.” The soldier confessed, staring down at the ground in thought. “They… always have something to fight for. And with their training, they’re practically guaranteed to protect what’s important to them… I suppose I wanted that guarantee.”

She wasn’t really sure why. From what little memories she did have of her childhood, she couldn’t perceive anything or anyone she particularly wanted to protect. Maybe if she knew Komaeda-kun as a child, that would have spurred her to get that training… With his luck, he’d need the superhuman reflexes of a soldier to help him out in a pinch.

… That was Mukuro’s current theory, anyway. Doubts she got from Monokuma be damned – Komaeda-kun **had** to be someone she knew. He was just too… familiar to her. Granted, he didn’t seem to recognize her…

But his acceptance of her had to count for something… right?

Teruteru cocked his head curiously.

“Guarantee, hmm…? Did you have family you wanted to protect? Or perhaps a cute boy~…?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

“I… I don’t know.” Mukuro mumbled, shuffling her feet uncertainly despite the suggestiveness of his tone at the end there. “I won a survival game tournament in elementary school, and wrote for military magazines. By middle school I had run off and joined Fenrir. I was... a natural with weapons.”

Teruteru nodded sagely.

“Like a duck takes to water~… Well, I’ve got the general picture, I think! You’re a woman that holds her special people close to her bosom~… Real bride and mother material, that’s what you are. Mmhmhmhm~…”

“You… You really think so?” Mukuro couldn’t help giving a small, vulnerable look.

… The first part. Not the last bit. Couldn’t Teruteru keep his mind out of the gutter? She couldn’t help thinking that, as a soldier, her sense of love, care, and compassion had been twisted into this inhumane, twisted thing. Mukuro had lost sight of… quite a lot of things, in her training to become a soldier. Like she had tunnel vision.

Teruteru suavely combed his hair.

“But of course~! I’m sure that with a fit, lithe bod like that, you’ll bear many children~… All for a charming, sexy husband~! Mmhmhm! My loins quiver at the thought of it!”

Despite the direction he was taking the conversation, Mukuro smiled faintly, staring off into space.

“Children…? Even though I’ve got freckles and don’t really have an attractive bone in my body?” She was really bearing her vulnerability for all to see, now.

Teruteru rubbed his chin speculatively.

“You kidding me? Those freckles are **adorable**! And you’ve got some fine legs, girl~!” … Was his nose bleeding?

Mukuro’s smile widened, in spite of it all. A dreamy look entering her eyes.

“Perhaps Komaeda-kun would…” She trailed off meaningfully.

“Eh? Komaeda?” Teruteru froze in his perverted thoughts and actions. “He wouldn’t be my first pick, but I suppose he’s not ugly…”

… Mukuro wasn’t listening anymore, however. Too absorbed in her fantasies… Fantasies of children with fluffy white, marshmallow-y hair… Kids that had insane luck going for them, but reflexes to ward off any of the bad variety.

Sublime~…

~*~

Sonia’s eyes sparkled as she had watched Sensei tear into the old lodge like a cleansing tornado… Armed with only a feather duster and a few cans of air freshener. In mere minutes, the entrance, office, bathroom, and hallway were positively immaculate. That still left the main room, kitchen, and some storage room toward the back, but Yukizome-sensei had paused in her revelry to address Sonia.

“Nevermind, do you mind checking the rooms and getting me a quick inventory? I know about the bathroom and all that I need to do in there. The office, I’m pretty sure I won’t have to do much else in there. And I guess Hanamura-kun has the kitchen covered… But the main hall and storage rooms, I’d like to know what I’m working with. Could you be a dear?”

Sonia pumped her arm excitedly.

“Fo sho! You can leave it to me, Sensei~!” The princess didn’t even question as the orange-haired woman bobbed her head up and down merrily before slipping into the office and closing the door behind her. Even if she didn’t have much to ‘do’ in there, Yukizome-sensei probably at least wanted to take inventory.

With bated breath, Sonia cracked open the doors to the main hall. Despite the lights being on, it was a bit like wandering into an ancient crypt. Cobwebs and dust… **everywhere**. Metal plates covered the windows toward the back, an air conditioning system was attached to the wall on the right, a power outlet was also along that wall, and there were five tables sprawled out over a wooden floor that had many weathered gaps between the boards. Aside from all that, there wasn’t anything else to note in the old-looking room.

After wandering around the main hall to get a better look from all angles, she moved to the storage room, walking past Teruteru and Mukuro as they were on their way out to the ranch. The storage room was in worse shape than the main hall, if only for the simple reason that it was smaller and more cluttered. Boxes containing supplies were piled toward the back of the space, while clothes were folded on a shelf and draped over some sort of basket on wheels. There were also three unused irons to the left. After rummaging around some of the boxes to see the treasures they held, Sonia returned to the main hall after what must’ve been ten or fifteen minutes or so to find Yukizome-sensei standing there, hands on her hips and looking around the hall.

“Definitely going to need a carpet in here…” The orange-haired woman muttered before hearing Sonia re-entering the hall. Turning around and beaming pleasantly, hands clasped together and held up to her cheek, Yukizome said, “Thank you, dear~! I’m assuming the storage room is the worst off, aside from the hall here?”

Sonia nodded sagely.

“With that flickering lightbulb and tight, claustrophobic space, it is like a room straight out of a horror film! The kind of place where a poor, defenseless woman or man goes to get brutally murdered with a knife to the back!”

Chisa’s smile twitched the tiniest amount at that description.

“Nevermind, sweetie, no more talking like that, okay…? I love you, and I don’t want to have Nidai sit on you all night.”

Sonia tilted her head curiously.

“Sit on me…? I have never heard of this custom in Japanese culture before. What purpose does it serve?”

“The ‘keeping you out of trouble’ kind…” Chisa muttered under her breath before tapping her chin in concentration. “Now, there wasn’t anything **dangerous** back there, right? Like sharp, pointy, or murder-y things?”

Sonia shrugged neutrally, again not really understanding the context of the conversation.

“There were irons, tablecloths, and boxes of random things all piled on top of one another. Could you kill someone by holding a scalding iron to their face?” Now she was curious…

Chisa’s smile grew twitchier.

“… Guess I know which room I’m giving the ‘cavity search’ treatment to…” She ignored the comment about the irons. Irons were tools of her trade as a housekeeper – to call them dangerous would be like calling **herself** dangerous! And that was just silly~…

If she was a bit intense, that was your fault, not hers. … She will love you violently, damnit.

But not **too** violently~!

Sonia’s eyes regained their sparkle as she got back on task for what they had to do.

“So what would you like me to do, Yukizome-sensei? How can I help with the dirty work?” The princess really was an eager one for learning how to clean.

Chisa patted the blonde’s head affectionately. She wouldn’t overwhelm the poor girl with an atrocious first experience like this… The lodge was in awful shape. It would take every skill she had as the Ultimate Housekeeper to clean out this building, make it murder-proof, and have it ready for tonight’s festivities. Togami-kun said he’d ensure that no weapons would be brought in, and she’d trust him on that…

Thankfully, the office and bathroom were safe and clean, hardly needing her attention at all. At least it was nice to know where the breaker was, and that it was out of reach. … That just left the main hall and storage rooms.

Chisa clasped the princess’s hands, her own eyes sparkling in return.

“You can fetch some things from the supermarket for me. We have tablecloths, but we still need a carpet for the floor, some streamers perhaps, and if you can, a lamp or two for the back tables. A little bit of extra lighting never hurt~!” Especially with the windows covered up like that. Why **were** they sealed up like that? The halls were the same way…

Sonia deflated just a little.

“Aww. I wanted to use that ‘duster of feathers’… You are quite good at using it, Sensei.” The blonde pouted.

Chisa just patted her head again affectionately.

“There’ll be plenty of opportunities later!” When they weren’t dealing with a murder scare. And when Chisa wasn’t pressed for time in terms of having the building ready in mere hours… “Get some of the others to help with the carpet. I don’t want you carrying that all by yourself, you hear?

Sonia beamed indulgently, if not still with a trace of disappointment.

“Loud and clear, Sensei…”

The princess shuffled out of the room, leaving her Sensei to tackle the dusting and cleaning of the main hall, and then departed from the lodge. Unbeknownst to her, Nagito, who had been circling the lodge from the outside, noticed her departure. He chuckled lightly to himself at the sight.

“Well! I guess that just leaves Sensei…” Experimentally, he opened the door to the lodge and poked his head in, muttering under his breath. “Housekeeping?”

No verbal response. Just the far-off sound of a vacuum cleaner from within the lodge.

The luckster brightened at the fortuitous turn of events. He patted at his hoodie’s big, deep pockets before turning around and plucking up the other object he’d been lugging around with him. He’d have to drop that off first, and then find a place to conceal the things in his pockets…

With any luck, this would only take about a minute. He didn’t need to worry if his… supplies would be discovered. His luck was the stuff of legends~…

~*~

Hajime wasn’t sure what it was that tipped him off. He’d been playing around with Chiaki for hours, bouncing from platform to platform, genre to genre, co-op to challenging her in Tekken or Dance, Dance Revolution… The point was, even though Chiaki absolutely destroyed him in everything they played, demolished his scores and accomplishments, it really had been an enjoyable afternoon.

As they resumed chilling on the couches, playing a multiplayer game on their Nantendo Game Girl Advances… Hajime couldn’t help thinking…

_‘Ahh… this is the…’_

**That.** That’s where the atmosphere changed. Not because of anything he or Chiaki had done… But because of the person that came stomping up to them, seeming aggravated.

“Hmph. So this is where you’ve been hiding, Hinata. Come with me, we have matters to discuss.”

Hajime looked up at the snooty heir, spluttering as he did so. After all, because of him, he’d just screwed up a combo really bad, and he just got owned by Chiaki yet again…

“I-I haven’t been **hiding**!” Hajime defended himself. “A-And besides, what do you even need me for?”

Byakuya snorted, crossing his arms and looking off to the side.

“I pegged you as the sort to remain in your cottage all day, so I figured you going anywhere else was your way of avoiding me…” The heir raised a finger to his temple curiously. “No matter. You are found, and we are wasting valuable time. You may return here once we are done.”

Hajime spluttered again at how forceful the heir was being, and he looked to the gamer for help. However, she had fallen asleep with a small snot bubble coming out of her nose. The brunet deadpanned a little at the sight… mostly because **she was still pressing buttons without missing a beat**. She could play games in her sleep? How was that even fair?!

_‘Thanks, Nanami…’_ Hajime inwardly sighed before reluctantly placing the Game Girl Advance down. He looked up at Byakuya uncertainly. “Well? Where’d you want to go talk?”

He hoped the heir didn’t have any other bomb-like things to show him… The one in Jabberwock Park was already stressing him out. He didn’t need any more stressful things.

Unsurprisingly, Byakuya led him back to his cottage and barged in without even asking permission. Really, after Nagito, Mukuro, and Chisa… He was desensitized to others invading his cottage by this point. Although, Yukizome-sensei hadn’t fully invaded his house yet. So that was something, right?

“A study on the second floor?” Byakuya caught a small glimpse of the upper level. “It seems I will have to reevaluate you. You may be more sophisticated than I gave you credit for.”

“… Thanks.” Hajime slightly deadpanned. He didn’t want to completely kill the good vibes he got from hanging out with Chiaki… And who knows? Maybe Togami would get less pushy as they moved along. That was the only thing that rankled him right now. “So, uh… what did you wanna talk about?”

Please don’t be anything too serious…

“The chicken in my hands...is far tastier than the beef inside the freezer...” Rather than give him a straight answer, the heir gave him that.

Hajime blinked owlishly.

“Uh… what?”

“It’s a German proverb.” Byakuya explained. “It means something inferior that's nearby is better than something good that's far away. But why would chicken be inferior to beef?  
Aren't there times when you'd obviously want to eat fried chicken instead of steak?”

Hajime scratched his cheek, chuckling sheepishly.

“That’s true, but… what are we even talking about?” The brunet wondered. _‘Is that even a real German proverb?’_

Not that he was an expert on German proverbs…

“And furthermore, why is pork not even mentioned in this comparison? Is pig meat unattractive to Germans?” Byakuya scowled and shook his head vigorously. “No... that's impossible. When you think of Germany, you think of sausage... And if you think of sausage, you're thinking of pig meat. What does this mean!? What is this conspiracy!?”

The Togami heir kept getting more and more worked up over what seemed like such a trifle to Hajime.

_‘Wh-What in the world is he so worked up about…?’_

“Hajime... Do you know which meat is the most efficient source of energy...? What meat contains the most vitamin B1 for converting glucose to energy!?” The heir demanded an answer.

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously, grinning sheepishly again.

“Uh… um… P-Pork, I guess…?”

Byakuya grinned proudly, crossing his arms.

“Correct... The same amount of pork has ten times the energy efficiency of other meats. Do you understand? **Ten times**!”

“I-I get it already… What’s your point?” Hajime tried once more to make sense of this rambling.

Byakuya turned his head to the side, scowling.

“There's only one thing I want to say to you. ...Hinata, become my assistant.”

If Hajime was lost before, he was even more perplexed now.

“H-Huh…?”

“The situation surrounding us and this island is even more complicated than I had thought. Even if it's just a commoner's assistance, it's better than having nobody at all...” The heir said by way of explanation, keeping his arms crossed and frowning in concentration.

Hajime scratched his head uncertainly.

“But...I don't even remember that much about myself. We don't even know if I have a talent that would be useful to you, you know?”

Byakuya shook his head, scowl deepening.

“Memory… Who… cares about that?”

“What…?” Hajime titled his head, perplexed.

“Even if you don't have your memories, you're still you, right? You are able to live your own life. That is already enough. All you have to do is be yourself.” The heir assured the brunet, nodding firmly. “As you stand before me, I... will believe in your potential.”

“Togami…” Hajime muttered, feeling touched that another person had such faith in him. Komaeda and Togami both… they had such faith in him, despite not knowing what his talent could be.

“Also… what use is the past?” Togami scoffed. “I, too, was...powerless in the past... but I'm different now... Throw away your past self... It's meaningless.”

Hajime stared at the Togami heir, not understanding in the slightest.

_‘Powerless…? What is he talking about? Was Togami really powerless in the past?’_

“Anyway… think about my offer. Despite appearances, I really do think you’re one of the more capable ones here. Between you, me, and Yukizome-sensei… we will protect everyone. No one has to die.”

_‘No one has to die…?’_ Hajime echoed in his head, feeling like he was missing a ton of context for this conversation. Out loud, he said. “Well, I don’t mind… I mean, if you want, we can bring in Komaeda and Ikusaba, too. I’m sure they’d be happy to help keep everyone safe. Ikusaba alone would be more reliable than me, y’know? Being a soldier and all.”

Byakuya frowned deeply at that suggestion, for some reason.

“Komaeda and Ikusaba, hmm…?” The heir trailed off uncertainly. He then declared cryptically, “Hinata, be careful. Who you make friends with… is your decision. I am certain Komaeda and Ikusaba have their good points… Just, don’t blindly trust in them. We are all strangers to one another, that makes this a very delicate situation.”

Hajime blinked owlishly again.

“T-Togami…?” The brunet really wasn’t sure what to say.

But Byakuya chuckled, slightly bowing his head and closing his eyes.

“Pay me no mind, Hinata. I am merely thinking out loud. Cherish those bonds with Komaeda and Ikusaba… Perhaps you can turn things around and reach them when no one else can.” The heir then suddenly snapped his eyes open, fixing Hajime with a deadly serious look. “Now. Enough of this heavy talk. More importantly… Do you like chicken or beef?”

… Hajime talked with Byakuya about meat until he had heartburn. He wondered about Byakuya’s cryptic words, though…

~*~

Mahiru huffed as she yanked Hiyoko away from a bawling Mikan as Ibuki tried to cheer her up. It really was one thing after another with this girl…

“Saionji, why do you keep picking on Tsumiki…?” The photographer asked exasperatedly, once they were a safe distance from the other two.

Hiyoko snorted disdainfully.

“Don’t tell me you’re falling for her, too! That big phony’s just **dying** for attention…” The dancer snapped venomously. “Did you not **see** what she did to my Charizard?!?!”

Mahiru released another airy sigh. She could kind of see why Hiyoko would see Mikan’s timidity as an act… The erotic accidental falls were becoming a bit of a problem. But still… The bullying was **way** over the line!

“Saionji, you just need to… stop treating her like crap.” The redhead felt her own patience wearing thin. “If you don’t trust her, just leave her alone! Same goes for the others. If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

The dancer pouted at the stern lecture.

“I’m not **bullying** them… I’m stating the blunt truth!” The blonde sniffled and shed tears at the redhead’s unconvinced glare. “What else am I supposed to say?! Grandma showed me how to deal with phony-baloneys like Pig Barf! You step on cockroaches before they can walk all over you! That’s how I was raised!!!”

Mahiru’s gaze became despondent as the dancer brought up her home life. It sounded… rough. By no means did it exchange the prickly words that Saionji spat out of her mouth all the time, but it at least explained where she got that scathing tongue from…

“Saionji…” The redhead groaned slightly. She placed her hands on her hips in exasperation. “How would **you** like it if someone bullied and was nasty to you? Try and think about it that way.”

Hiyoko snorted derisively.

“I would just establish the pecking order! They can be nasty all they want, but I’ll make them know their place!”

“With crocodile tears?” Mahiru pressed with a lazy shrug of her shoulders. At the dancer’s shocked expression, the photographer elaborated. “Yeah. Not everyone’s gonna fall for that stuff. And whether they do or don’t… once they find out you were manipulating them, they’re just gonna be more pissed at you. Do you really want to distance yourself that badly?”

Hiyoko’s face soured, clasping her hands behind her back and looking to the side.

“O-Of course I do! People can’t be trusted! My family’s had lots of assassinations and stuff… So… Why should **I** go out of my way to be nice to phonies?”

_‘With attitudes like that, is it any wonder you guys are targeted…?’_ Mahiru shook her head in pity. “I know it’s hard… But you can help change your family’s traditions, you know? If you’re so scared people are out to get you, then… start changing yourself. I’m sure once you do, others will see, and the people who **aren’t** phonies will see that. And they’ll want to be your friend.”

Saionji muttered sourly under her breath. When asked to repeat that louder, she hissed.

“I-I s-said it’s **hard** to open up when we’re supposed to kill each other to escape!!!” The tears that came this time appeared much more genuine. “Who’m I supposed to trust in this hellhole?! A-Any of those bastards c-could get me…!”

Mahiru’s eyes softened before she abruptly pulled Hiyoko in for a hug, which the shorter girl stiffened as a response to the contact.

“You can trust me. And you can trust Mioda, Nanami, even Tsumiki… Hinata and Komaeda seem decent enough, too. I’ll even help you get to know those guys, okay?”

Hiyoko hesitated before burying her face in the photographer’s chest. She… she wished she could believe that… Maybe Koizumi was decent. But the rest just… really had her on edge.

And she wished she could tell Koizumi exactly **why** she was on edge… But no one would believe her.

~*~

Nagito smiled disarmingly as he approached the mechanic who was walking in a daze away from the zoo after the sun began to set. Kazuichi rubbed his brow in slight aggravation at having to talk to someone else so soon.

“Waddya want, dude? I just wanna go to my room and crash for a couple of hours…”

Nagito chuckled lightly.

“Oh, Souda-kun… Don’t worry, I’ll only take a few moments of your time, I promise~… And if you won’t hear me out, I’m **sure** I’ll find someone else who will.”

~*~

“Wh-What is it…?” Mikan couldn’t help asking the luckster as he approached her.

“I just wanted to ask what **your** thoughts were on the whole ‘memories’ ordeal…” Nagito smiled innocently as he crossed his arms.

Mikan poked her fingers together nervously.

“W-Well… M-Memory loss is possible… There are w-ways to pull it off…”

Nagito shook his head slowly.

“Uh-oh, that’s not what I meant~… I mean, what are your thoughts on killing someone to get those memories back for everyone…? After all, Monokuma said it’s just **one** murder, that’s all he wants. And that’s why I’ve given you guys the **perfect** setup for it!”

Mikan wailed, clutching at her head as the luckster continued so casually.

~*~

Sonia was pale as Nagito just waved his hand casually after such a troubling explanation of what he had planned, why he’d done it, and how others knew about the plan.

“Wh-Why would you do such things?!” The princess demanded heatedly. “A human life is not meant to be treated so lightly…!”

Nagito crossed his arms and gave a smug grin.

“I wholeheartedly agree. Monokuma’s price for our memories **is** steep… But think about it, Nevermind-san. **At least** two to three years are missing. I wonder what happened to Novoselic in all that time…? Has there been any civil unrest? What about your abduction, has **that** thrown your people into a panic? Even if you don’t care about the memories… don’t you at least want to alleviate their concerns…?”

Sonia shuddered at the rhetoric he was using. It… It all did make sense. And of course she wondered what had happened in her home country after all this time, it was always on her mind… Yet… and yet…

“Wh-Why are you telling me this…?” The princess whispered, feeling weak in the knees, and feeling oh-so-conflicted.

Nagito’s face brightened even more… if that was even possible. It made Sonia queasy.

“Don’t you already know, Nevermind-san? I want to see your Hope and everyone else’s Hopes **shine**! We can overcome this Despair, I know we will~!” The wheezy laughter that escaped him unsettled Sonia even more.

... This man was not well. And… And someone was going to die. He was absolutely right. For even if his plans were derailed tonight, he had planted the seeds of doubt… Nagito would not even reveal who else he spoke to.

Would they be able to come back from this…?

Would **she** be able to resist the temptations of her heart, when the time came?

Would any of them?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> JET SET RADIOOO~ Whether you're chillin' on your couch, or in your coffin~ Don't forget to tune us in to keep you companyyyyy~ :D
> 
> *coughs* Sorry. Wrong series. Very old school of me. 
> 
> Are we all sitting comfortably? Good. It's time for the party~ :3 Nagito's worked very hard for you guys. You appreciate what that marshmallow-head's cooked up. It might be just as delicious as Teruteru's cooking~ 
> 
> Someone's gonna diiiiie next week~ Last chance to speculate before we open the box with Schrodinger's Cat. XD
> 
> .... And someone better restrain Muku-chan's fantasies before they get too far. XDDD


	8. Chapter 1, Part 5: Destination Despair

The Monokuma Nighttime Announcement rang out, as it always did. But for once, Hajime wasn’t going to turn in for the night. It’d be his first all-nighter with a class... and it’d be for pleasure, not working on a school project or studying for a test.

… Hajime wasn’t sure how to feel about a party like this. He was excited, sure, but Togami’s words were still echoing in his head, and he couldn’t help wondering about the reason for the party. It was a bit… ominous.

They could’ve picked a better night to hold a party indoors, though… Aside from a few clouds, the stars were all out and the night looked gorgeous.

“You’re here…” Byakuya muttered as Hajime stepped into the old building. There were two cases sitting right beside the heir, and from what the brunet could see, the building did look to be in need of some serious renovation… At least Yukizome-sensei made it look immaculate. “Now then, stand up straight and raise your arms.”

Hajime’s brow wrinkled in confusion.

“Why do I have to do that?”

“Because I need to do a body check.” The heir said by way of explanation, which… didn’t explain anything. At Hajime’s bewildered expression, Byakuya snorted. “Since I’m the one hosting the party, it’s necessary for me to take all possible security measures. I already promised that I would not allow even one person to become a victim…!”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced the tiniest amount.

“I-I get it…” He understood, though it was a bit uncomfortable having to undergo a body check…

After the brunet reluctantly submitted to the body check, Byakuya raised a finger to his temple speculatively.

“Excellent. You haven’t brought anything dangerous. And you even have your GPS locator on you, as I advised. I had to turn away a couple of our more… neglectful… classmates for not being more prepared. Just as an extra measure, I want everyone to have their locator on them this evening.”

Hajime’s shoulders sagged a little bit at that.

“You’re… really going all-out for just a party…” The brunet muttered. He frowned as he got a better look at the cases near Byakuya’s feet. “Metal cases…?”  
“Duralumin, actually.” The heir corrected him. “I found them at the supermarket. This one is used for storing any dangerous items I find during body checks. The other one is for… well, let’s just say it’s for emergencies only.”

Hajime blinked owlishly.

“What do you mean by ‘emergencies’…?”

Byakuya rolled his eyes and turned his head away, crossing his arms.

“… Don’t worry about it. Some of the others are already here, gathered at the dining hall in the back. Go there and wait…”

Hajime sighed at the heir’s dismissal, but proceeded further inside the old building. For the sake of sating his curiosity, the brunet took a more indirect route since this was his first time inside the place. The first room he encountered upon rounding the corner was an office. From what he could see, it seemed to be an average office with a desk, shelves, and drawers; there was also an AC unit on the wall, and it seemed the breaker for the building was in there… way up high, towards the ceiling. The desk seemed a little… cluttered with folders and papers. Almost like someone had sifted through a drawer and emptied out its contents right out on the desk…

But it wasn’t Hajime’s place to comment on the untidiness, since Yukizome-sensei probably had her hands full with other areas. So he moved onto the room next to the office, which was a unisex bathroom. This room seemed much more scrubbed down and cleaned. Which… Hajime could honestly understand Sensei focusing on this room, since this one would definitely be used all night… The towel on the rack was bigger and longer than he expected, though – more like a full-length body towel used after showers and baths. And there were two trash cans, not one; different kinds, too. One was without a top; the other was a small can that you stepped down on a pedal to open. Everything else seemed commonplace with the sink, mirror, and toilet.

The brunet didn’t care enough to examine the bathroom for much longer, so he moved on. Next up seemed like the center of the building and hall, with the hall expanding into a square, doors to what must have been the dining hall on the left and windows with metal plates affixed to them on the right. That’s where Hajime found Nekomaru loitering.

“There’s a tantalizing aroma wafting from the kitchen…” The team manager mused, crossing his arms and nodding sagely. “However, Togami will yell at me if I don’t go straight to the dining hall. You should head over there as well!”

“Y-Yeah, I will…” Hajime sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck as Nekomaru waltzed into the dining hall after that. He was just curious about the building, so he decided to explore the back of it before heading to his destination.

Close to the kitchen, there was a pair of fire doors located along the walls. Hajime took a few steps into the kitchen, seeing how bustling and cluttered it all was. There was a method to Hanamura’s madness, however; even if the brunet didn’t understand how the chef liked to organize things, he could tell it was organized chaos.

“Oh, did you need something? Don’t worry, I’ve already prepared all the dishes.” Teruteru grinned coyly at his fellow brunet. “Or rather… Did you want me to cook you up, too?”

“What does that mean?” Hajime asked warily. Teruteru just combed his hair suavely and giggled.

“Mmhmhmhm…”

… Hajime decided he needed to get out of there and fast, so he swiftly took his exit. As he did so, he bumped into Mahiru as the hall branched off to the left.

“So this is what the inside looks like. There are a lot of gaps in the floor… Is that just due to old age?” The redhead shrugged nonchalantly. “We really need to be careful in here. I know some of us are real klutzes, that’s for sure.”

Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly.

“Tsumiki trips over air, apparently, so… We’re probably in for a long night.”

Mahiru stared at the brunet for a while after that. Hajime could see the gears turning, however, so he didn’t really blame her when she darted off without another word. He’d help watch out for the clumsy nurse, too, but he wanted to check out the room at the end of the hall, first. When he approached the door, Mukuro emerged from it, blinking owlishly at him.

“Ikusaba?” Hajime asked uncertainly, not expecting to find anyone else back here.

“Oh, hey, Hinata.” The soldier greeted plainly. “You need something?”

Hajime frowned, brow furrowing.

“Not… particularly? I was just exploring a little before the party.”

The soldier nodded faintly at the reasoning, hand not leaving the door handle.

“Scoping out unknown territory’s always a good idea… You never know what pitfalls or traps to avoid, if you don’t.”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck a bit anxiously, and gestured vaguely at the door.

“Is… that what you were doing back here…?”

Mukuro tilted her head curiously.

“No. Komaeda-kun asked a small favor, that’s all.”

“A small… favor?” The brunet echoed, obviously lost.

The soldier shrugged nonchalantly, releasing the door handle before beginning to depart.

“He was gonna use something later. I just warmed them up for him.” Waving, the dark-haired girl took off, presumably to rendezvous with the aforementioned luckster. “Well, see ya.”

Curiosity piqued, Hajime poked his head into the mysterious room… only to find a neat and tidy storage room. The only item he saw the soldier could have been referencing were three irons, all plugged in.

Well, that was a little more boring than he was expecting. Hajime was half-expecting some nefarious device or, you know, some kind of subterfuge after the soldier had described it so vaguely… He was glad it didn’t turn out to be that way, yet some part of him still felt a little disappointed. If it had been something sneaky or devious, he could have put a stop to it before it got out of hand.

But he wasn’t gonna mess with Komaeda’s laundry. At best, unplugging the irons would only stall him, anyway.

… What did Komaeda need to iron, though?

~*~

When Hajime wandered back to the dining hall, he could see over half the class was present. Mahiru, Mikan, Chiaki, Nagito, Mukuro, Nekomaru, Akane, Gundham, Sonia, and Kazuichi were all there. In addition to that, Hajime observed the hall, seeing tables and chairs spread out over a carpeted floor. Streamers hung from the ceiling, lamps were on the tables toward the back, the windows toward the back of the hall were covered with metal plates like the ones in the hall, and there was another AC unit over on the right wall.

Nagito waved as Hajime idly looked around and wandered over.

“Do you like it? Yukizome-sensei worked really hard to clean this place! Nevermind-san said it was like an ancient catacomb in here when they first opened it up…” The luckster spread out his arms grandly, smile widening. “But now look at it! Such a magnificent venue for our little soiree~…”

Hajime’s brow crinkled as he got a better look at the edges of the room, where the floorboards could be seen, poking out. The carpet didn’t seem to match the width and length of the room.

“Was… this carpet always in here?” He couldn’t help asking.

Mukuro shook her head.

“Nevermind and some others brought it here. Sensei cleaned this place out and then had us cover up the floor…”

“It’s enough, right?” Nagito asked, gazing at his hand as he held it up to his face. “It’s not like we’ll all be standing along the edges. That’d be such an awful waste of a hard day’s work! Sensei might have some words for you, if you did that~…”

Hajime shivered at the not-so-veiled threat. Yukizome-sensei could be very high-strung, and he didn’t want to find out what kind of “words” someone who spent hours cleaning had to say about their work going to waste… Ultimate Housekeeping talent or not, you did not push Yukizome-sensei’s buttons.

Ever.

Deciding to socialize a little before the party, Hajime walked around and talked to some of the others.

“I’m worried about Monokuma.” Chiaki murmured, tapping her chin thoughtfully. “If he finds out we’re having a party, there’s no way he’ll leave us alone… We gotta do something about it.”

Hajime nodded.

“You’re right, we should do something.” Though he wasn’t sure, exactly, how they were supposed to stop a bear that could seemingly pop out of anywhere…

Chiaki pulled up her hood around her head protectively.

“I wonder if someone can do something about it.”

“Hmm, I wonder.” Hajime muttered.

“I wonder?” Chiaki echoed, tilting her head cutely.

_‘… So we’re on the same page, then? I’m not sure if I understand.’_ Hajime thought to himself in bemusement. He decided to just leave it at that and wander over to somebody else… who happened to be Gundham, in this case.

“Even though that man is a lowly worm, it appears his cooking skills are most impressive, indeed…” The breeder crossed his arms, cackling to himself. “Nevertheless, even this food cannot stand against the gourmet cuisine of the multiverse…”

“I-I… Yeah, sure…” Hajime sweatdropped, not really sure what the breeder was talking about. He frowned when he saw Sonia standing there, too, and looking distracted, massaging her arm while looking down. “Er… Nevermind? Is everything okay?”

Sonia jumped the tiniest amount at the sudden voice and smiled apologetically at the brunet, who jumped in response to her knee jerk reaction.

“I-I am sorry… I simply have a lot on my mind. R-Remind me again, of what were we discussing?”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Uh… Well, Tanaka said the food seems pretty good. I haven’t sampled anything yet, but I’ll take his word for it if the Ultimate Cook made all this. It looks and smells and amazing.”

Tanaka eccentrically struck a pose, his hamsters emerging from his scarf.

“ **But** , compared to the multiverse, this is all but a trifle! Dark Queen, lay to rest your concerns for your labors have produced a marvelous banquet! **Tonight we feast**!”

Hajime didn’t have to look too deeply into those words and feelings. He could tell right away Gundham wanted to cheer the princess up. … And it was working, if the way she had her pumped up excitedly was any indication.

“Then let us feast! Hell to the yes!”

… Hajime decided to leave those two alone for now, and proceeded to talk to some more people.

“Man, that was so uncomfortable…” Kazuichi grumbled, pulling his beanie over his head. “Getting groped so thoroughly by a man, that was my worst nightmare.”

Hajime blinked as he took a moment to realize who the mechanic was talking about. Not Teruteru, but…

“Oh, you mean the body check.” The brunet mused, not feeling comfortable with it, either.

“Plus, he got super pissed and started yelling at me when he noticed I had a wrench with me…” The mechanic continued unloading his woes on Hajime. “Seriously… How friggin’ annoying…”

Hajime shrugged neutrally.

“It’s your fault for having a wrench in the first place.”

Kazuichi crossed his arms and glowered at Hajime the tiniest amount.

“I just happened to find it at the airport. Carrying it around calms me down. But… Togami put it in that duralumin case of his.” He then rubbed the back of his head, laughing nervously. “And can ya blame me for needing some comfort? I mean, after all that crap that psycho was rambling on about…”

“… Psycho?” Hajime echoed, baffled. “Who are you talking about?”

Kazuichi massaged his temple, grimacing.

“… Oh. He didn’t say anything to you, despite being besties… It must be nice, having your head in the fluffy pink clouds. Uh… I’m kinda jealous of you right now, so… Later.” Again, laughing nervously, the mechanic excused himself.

Hajime stared after him, feeling a bit concerned now. Kazuichi was definitely on edge, and he wasn’t acting like his usual self. Sure, the mechanic complained all the time, but you’d think with a party going on he’d be all about getting in-between Sonia and Gundham. And if not that, boasting about something he was tinkering with in the service shop.

Hajime didn’t know if the uneasiness related to Sonia’s own concerns from earlier… But the princess had bounced back, so maybe that wasn’t the case. There’d been no rebound for Kazuichi. He looked as catty as when Hajime first laid eyes on him, in the dining hall. Hopefully the party would put the mechanic more at ease…

Deciding to leave the drooling Akane in Nekomaru’s capable hands, Hajime moved onto the final two in the dining hall, Mikan and Mahiru. The former was crying for some reason, though the brunet couldn’t perceive what that reason was. Mahiru was comforting her in the corner.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Hajime asked, walking up to the two girls with a furrowed brow.

“I dunno!” Mahiru said, massaging the purple-haired girl’s shoulders consolingly. “She just started crying out of nowhere. I thought she tripped, but…”

The redhead trailed off meaningfully, and Hajime found himself agreeing with the assessment. If the nurse had tripped recently, all eyes would have been on her. Mikan was by herself, so it was hard to believe any of the current people in the hall had made her cry… After all, none of them had picked on her or started a fight with her.

… Now, if Hiyoko was here…

Still, Mikan didn’t seem to be in a hurry to stop the waterworks, even with both Mahiru and himself present. Hajime decided to take the initiative.

“Hey, Tsumiki, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“I-I-I’m sorry…” Mikan sobbed, rubbing at her eyes in futility. “I-I know I shouldn’t c-cry… N-Not when Togami-kun and Sensei are in charge of the party…”

Hajime frowned as more uneasiness creeped up his spine.

“You’re right, Togami and Yukizome-sensei are in charge, but… What’s that gotta do with anything?”

Mikan sniffled.

“Th-They’ll keep us safe… I-I know they will…” She mumbled without really answering his question. Mahiru leaned in a bit, dabbing at Mikan’s tear-stained face with a handkerchief.

“Was Saionji bullying you again? Is that why you’re worried?”

Hajime’s confusion multiplied as Mikan… **hesitated**. They were in the corner, far removed from the rest of the partygoers. And Saionji hadn’t even arrived yet. Why was the nurse hesitating to say anything…?

“Y-Yes…” Mikan seemed to settle on, at last. A defeated look seemed to flash in her eyes, and her shoulders slumped even under the photographer’s soothing massage. “Sh-She… She…”

The nurse trailed off incomprehensibly, covering her face as she sobbed anew. Hajime was about to ask whether it really had been Saionji that bullied her again, or if it was someone else. Because while it was plausible, something about this whole thing seemed… off.

But before he could inquire further, another voice cut in.

“Sorry to interrupt, but it seems like everybody else is here!” Nagito explained, hands clasped behind his back as he strode over to the trio. Mukuro accompanied him, as she always did. “Hmm…? Is something wrong with Tsumiki?”

Hajime looked out at the hall to see Togami, Yukizome-sensei, and most of the other stragglers were indeed present. He then gazed back at Mikan and Mahiru before flashing a weak smile at the luckster.

“… Let’s just go see what Togami wants us to do now.” He said, guiding the luckster away with the soldier. Mahiru shot him a grateful smile, and Hajime simply nodded back to her.

Even if it wasn’t much, he’d let Mikan collect herself. She didn’t need to be gawked at right now.

… In his efforts, however, he did miss the way Mikan tensed up when Nagito appeared…

~*~

“Thank you for waiting.” Byakuya addressed the class soon after entering the dining hall. “Teruteru is in the kitchen, but everyone else seems to have made it.”

Hajime blinked slowly and looked around. Indeed, everyone seemed accounted for… even Fuyuhiko was standing aloofly off to the side, stubbornly crossing his arms and looking off to the side.

“Tch. Not like you bastards gave much choice.” The yakuza grunted.

In response, Chisa just swayed back and forth, humming merrily.

“Thank you for coming~… We care about you, y’know? We don’t just want you physically safe. You’re one of us, and we want to get to know you. There’s always time for brooding tomorrow.” When the yakuza just deadpanned at her, the teacher gave a closed-eyed, pleasant grin. “That goes for all of you! Every single one of you matters. Don’t forget that.”

As most of them absorbed Yukizome-sensei’s kind words, Byakuya abruptly tensed up, snapping toward one of the tables.

“Hey, what is that?!” His face became intense as he stomped towards the table that had him on high alert. “… Dangerous.”

Everyone stared, flabbergasted, at the heir as he casually scooped up iron skewers and began devouring the meat on them. Hajime was the first to recover from the shock.

“H-Hey! What are you doing?!” The brunet cried out, thinking it a bit unfair the blond had started without them. … And with gusto, at that.

“You’re hoggin’ all the food! No fair!” Akane whined.

“No, I’m not!” Byakuya denied as he continued to feast.

“I don’t care what you say, you’re totally pigging out!” Mahiru scolded the heir.

The heir sighed.

“I told you, I’m not…! Look carefully at this dish.” He demanded, not stopping his vigorous pace.

“Looks like delicious roasted meat…” Nekomaru muttered, hands on his hips as he watched the heir engorge himself, just like everybody else.

“And just what is stabbed into this roasted meat?” Byakuya declared leadingly.

“Hmm. It’s an iron skewer. They’re all like that.” Peko mused thoughtfully, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Byakuya nodded sagely.

“That’s right. This iron skewer is definitely a dangerous item. I must take full responsibility and collect it!” He declared passionately… still pigging out, too.

That was the moment the chef decided to show up, grinning excitedly as he brought in more food.

“Heeey~! Looks like everyone’s here! I should go ahead and bring out the rest of the… huh?” Teruteru paused as he registered what Byakuya was doing. He whined. “Whaaa?! Some messy eater ruined my arrangement!”

“Who made this dish?” Byakuya demanded after finishing all the meat and storing away the skewers in the duralumin case.

“Th-That would be me, but… um… Are you a food critic?” Teruteru asked uncertainly.

Byakuya ignored that.

“What are you plotting? Cooking with such dangerous items…” He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the chef.

Teruteru quivered emotionally.

“D-Dangerous…? That’s churrasco, it’s a South American meal where you stab meat on an iron skewer to cook it.” He helpfully imparted his knowledge on the dish. “It felt really tropical and exotic, so I totally thought it would fit the party’s atmosphere.”

Byakuya was not moved by the passionate display.

“These iron skewers are a problem.” The heir declared with no room for debate.

“E-Eh?! Iron skewers aren’t allowed, either?!” Teruteru cried distressfully.

“If that’s how you’re acting, then there might be more skewers than just these…” Byakuya’s lips curled in disapproval. He then turned his back on everyone and started to leave the dining hall. “Hey… Hinata. Come with me. I need your help.”

Hajime recoiled a little at being dragged into this.

“Wh-Why me?!” Did this have to do with that ‘Assistant’ offer from earlier? It wasn’t fair to start his ‘duties’ in the middle of a party when he just wanted to relax…

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously.

“It’s your fault for standing right in front of him… My condolences.”

Hajime simply deadpanned at the mechanic. Really? He was gonna be blamed for where he randomly chose to stand?

“I think it’s a wonderful idea~…” Chisa chipped in, beaming innocently at the brunet. “You’ll help Togami-kun, won’t you, Hinata? He picked you first because you’re so reliable.”

… Okay, that wasn’t even fair. Togami, he could probably have turned down, if only because of the heir’s pushiness. Yukizome-sensei… not so much. Sighing, Hajime reluctantly followed after Byakuya, and paused just outside the kitchen.

“All right… This is the kitchen. We have to thoroughly inspect it to make sure there are no dangerous items.” The heir declared forcefully before entering. Hajime followed him in. “Let’s get on with it, then. Search this place thoroughly. Look… I found these. There are forks and knives on that shelf.”

Hajime wilted at that.

“Don’t tell me, those too…?”

“These are definitely dangerous items. If you’re just eating, chopsticks are enough.” The heir told him pointedly, tossing the forks and knives one by one into the duralumin case.

“You’re being very thorough about this…” Hajime muttered, looking around the kitchen more carefully this time. It helped that Teruteru wasn’t… present.

And even if he was, Hajime was sure that Byakuya would stop any perverted antics. So. He handed the heir some cooking knives he found on the center counter.

“Out of the question! Knives are far too dangerous! I’ll safeguard them.” The heir tossed the knives in the duralumin case with the rest.

Hajime’s eyes fell on the ginormous piece of meat next.

_‘Chinese, Japanese, French, and Italian cuisine… Seafood dishes, too… There’s even a huge piece of meat on the bone…! That Hanamura… he sure got fired up. I don’t even know if I’d be able to eat that much food.’_ The brunet mused to himself.

Byakuya crossed his arms, frowning.

“It seems there are no dangerous items – like that skewer in the churrasco earlier – inside that pile of food.”

“That… appears to be the case…” Hajime nodded faintly, feeling a bit relieved. _‘Phew. I wouldn’t have known what to do if he said fish bones and meat bones were dangerous items, too…’_

The last major thing Hajime noticed was a clipboard dangling off a hook over the counter. It had a bulleted list on it.

“I see… It appears to be an equipment list for the kitchen.” Byakuya mused.

_’20 forks, 20 knives, 20 spoons, 5 iron skewers, 3 frying pans, 20 wine glasses… There are also iron plates for barbecue… and even a portable stove for cooking hotpots.’_ Hajime read the list side by side with the heir.

“Iron plates and a portable stove… I do recall seeing them on the shelf over there. This kitchen seems to be well kept. There should be no problems using it.” Byakuya nodded sagely, gazing around the kitchen with appraising eyes. “Though this building is old, the kitchen is impressive. Compared to a normal restaurant, it’s not too shabby.”

Hajime stared down at the floor for a moment, deep in thought.

“Hey, Togami… Are you sure we have to go this far for a party…?”

“I’m doing this **because** it’s necessary.” Byakuya insisted stubbornly. “If I’m to fulfill the promise I made to **not let anyone become a victim** , I must be extra vigilant.”

“Really…? Is that all?” Hajime asked, perplexed.

“What do you mean?” Byakuya demanded.

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck anxiously.

“Well, I’m just assuming, but… I think something must’ve happened to you… After all, you decided to throw a party so suddenly. I can’t help but thinking there’s a reason for that.”

The heir shook his head.

“That’s not it… I’ve been a distrustful person… for as long as I can remember.”

“Distrustful person…?” The brunet echoed, confused.

Crossing his arms, the heir clicked his tongue.

“Hmph, I don’t like to talk about my past, but… It’s fine, I’ll just tell you a little bit of it. I cannot talk to others about my past… I suspect that my skeptical nature is partly to blame. Distrusting others… and being distrusted in turn… For a long time, my life has been a living hell. It was inevitable I would end up this way. But, in this kind of situation, my skeptical nature might be of good use. If we’re to survive here, **skepticism** is necessary at all costs.”

Hajime’s frown deepened.

“By the way… that past you mentioned…”

“Now is not the time.” Byakuya cut him off with a disapproving glare. “However, one day… There will definitely be a time when I will be able to tell you about it. If nothing happens and time passes for us peacefully… I will have no choice but to talk.”

Hajime’s brow furrowed at the rather incomplete story. Maybe because it was incomplete, it was even more mysterious… The heir definitely had a huge mystery slumbering deep within him. Hajime just couldn’t begin to guess at what it was.

“Hey, enough with the unnecessary banter.” Byakuya decided sternly. “We’d better hurry up and find the rest of these dangerous items.”

Shortly after, Teruteru waddled into the kitchen, appearing devastated.

“Wah, the kitchen’s a mess! What happened here?!”

“Don’t raise your annoying voice…” Byakuya scowled. “I just removed all the dangerous items.”

But the chef didn’t calm down. If anything, he seemed more distressed.

“Ah, there are no knives or forks! Why?! How come?!”

“I literally just said that I removed all the dangerous items…” Togami huffed.

The pupils in Teruteru’s eyes turned into pinpricks.

“Don’t tell me… You’re treating cooking utensils as dangerous items?!” The chef paused thoughtfully. “Well… most of the dishes are finished. All I gotta do is arrange the plates, so it’s not a problem, but… but… But still! Waaaaaaaah! Hinata!”

Hajime recoiled as the chef started clinging to him desperately.

“St-Stop it! Get off me!”

Teruteru stroked his chin.

“Eh? Not into that sort of thing? Well, that’s a little depressing.” The chef lamented.

Hajime just deadpanned at the portly boy. Why did he have to be so horny?

“Hey, before you get all flirty with each other, answer something for me…” Byakuya demanded of the chef. He held up the clipboard. “Is this **everything** that is stocked in this kitchen? No hidden items?”

Teruteru nodded distractedly, mind still clearly on… other things.

“Yep, yep… Sensei and I counted them to verify the list… That’s everything stocked in this lodge. No surprises.”

Byakuya hung the list back up on the hanger.

“Then there is nothing for us to worry about now… All dangerous items have been secured. All that’s left is to keep a watchful eye. Hinata, let us return to the dining hall. You, too, Hanamura.”

Hajime frowned at that.

“You’re not gonna keep a watchful eye all night, are you? You just said all the dangerous stuff’s been locked up!”

“Never rule anything out, Hinata.” The heir scolded the brunet. “It’s always possible to kill someone with your bare hands. I am merely doing my duty as your leader.”

The brunet wilted at the lecture. Togami… really needed to lighten up.

~*~

“Ah, they’re back!” Mahiru said as the trio returned to the dining hall.

Akane placed a hand on her hip, glaring pointedly at them.

“Hey, let’s eat already! I’m starvin’ here!”

“There are still issues that need to be addressed.” Byakuya denied the gymnast’s hungry complaints.

“Eh? An issue?” Akane punched her open palm. “Who do I gotta beat the crap outta? Just say the word, I’ll do it for ya!”

“That won’t be necessary…” The heir scoffed. “One of the issues is where to safeguard this duralumin case that has all the confiscated dangerous items.”

As Byakuya held up the case in question, Kazuichi scratched his cheek nervously.

“Can’t we just leave it here?”

The heir raised a finger to his temple astutely.

“I’ve already put a lock on the case, so it shouldn’t be a problem, but… we should definitely up the security and keep it someplace safe.”

“Someplace safe…?” Sonia echoed, tilting her head. She then straightened up as she thought of something. “Ah! There is a storage room in the back of this building.”

“A storage room… Well, we can’t just leave it alone back there.” Byakuya mused.

“Someone can guard it, then.” Peko chipped in, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “That would resolve the issue, yes?”

“Eh? Who? Who?” Hiyoko pursed her lips, cocking her head obnoxiously.

Peko sighed breezily.

“I will do it, of course.”

Mikan tittered nervously.

“Eh, are you sure…? I guess… if you insist. Just kidding…!” Hajime was a little relieved to see the poor nurse had recovered, if even just a little bit.

Ibuki rubbed the back of her head.

“But it’ll be lonely there by yourself.”

Peko bowed her head slightly, closing her eyes solemnly.

“I don’t mind… I’m not really good in situations where I have to be around lots of people, anyway.”

“Nyahaha~!” Ibuki giggled, waving her arm about in the air cheerfully. “If I wrote a song about this, its title would definitely be **‘Lonely Girl in the Storage Room’** ~!”

“However, Hanamura has gone to the trouble of cooking… Is it all right to bring some of this with me?” Peko formally requested.

“Yeah, that’s totally fine!” Teruteru piped up, grinning proudly.

Chisa clapped her hands together once, frowning thoughtfully at the swordswoman.

“Now, I don’t have a problem with your guard duty, Pekoyama, but asking you to isolate yourself in the storage room is too much. Even if I cleaned up in there, you deserve to be in a more comfortable place, where we can check in on you!”

Byakuya nodded sagely at this suggestion.

“Very true. This party is for everyone’s sake. Pekoyama, guard the duralumin case in the office near the front. There’s a circuit breaker in there, too, so it would behoove us to watch that, as well.”

“Understood. I shall guard the office, then.” Peko accepted her new duty, taking a plate of food along with her and the duralumin case. “I should get going. Have fun tonight, everyone.”

Ibuki grinned ear to ear, nodding eagerly to herself.

“Mmm, seeing Peko’s back as she walks away makes me feel like she’s got this super cool, melancholy vibe…”

Hiyoko scratched her cheek curiously, staring at the other duralumin case.

“But shouldn’t she have taken that other case with her, too?”

Byakuya stared down at the case in question.

“This… No, this case is fine.” The heir declared confidently.

The dancer snickered at his clear bias.

“Ah, no fair! You’re, like, the only one who got to bring their own stuff.”

“When you’re as special as me… you get special privileges.” Byakuya rebutted her.

“When you put it that way… it’s hard to argue with you.” Kazuichi laughed nervously.

“This duralumin case stays with me at all times. I’ve put the key to the other case in here as well.” The heir revealed, keeping his arms crossed over his chest. “I will take full responsibility for watching over it. There’s no way I can let anyone else handle this matter.”

Akane drooled as she hungrily raised her hands, ready to launch herself at the food.

“M-More importantly… We’re all done now, right? Let’s start the party…”

“No, there’s still one other issue.” Togami refuted her again.

The gymnast groaned, punching her palm again.

“Ugh, who do ya want me to beat the crap outta?! Hurry up and tell me already!” She demanded impatiently. Hajime sweatdropped.

“Seriously, it has nothing to do with that…”

“Actually, if you’re volunteering, I do have one particular nuisance in mind.” The heir corrected the brunet, much to his surprise. “I’m talking about Monokuma, of course. He’s the one thing that could obviously disrupt this party.”

Akane grinned wolfishly as she radiated an intense energy.

“Awww riiiiight~! So you’ll let me eat if I beat the crap outta Monokuma, right?!”

Nekomaru held up his hand authoritatively.

“Wait a sec… If you actually pick a fight with that thing, you’re just going to end up perforated.”

“Are you tellin’ me to wait until I starve to death?!” Akane demanded, giving the coach the stinkeye.

“Starve to death? That’s a little extreme…” Mahiru muttered.

“Our opponent is not someone we can just fight. Rather, it’s better if we use our heads and think of a plan…” Byakuya concluded.

Mukuro took a step forward, face looking more determined than before.

“I can do it.”  
“You?” Byakuya challenged before seeming to reconsider. “… No, I suppose you **would** be the most qualified. If you’re sure you can handle this.”

“I can.” Mukuro reaffirmed. And she meant it. If she had to pick which was the bigger threat to Komaeda-kun, it would have to be that bear. That still left people like Nidai, Owari, and Kuzuryu in here with the luckster, but that was balanced out by Yukizome-sensei and the bossy Togami.

… She’d always feel conflicted about leaving the luckster’s immediate side, but this was a party, and Komaeda-kun wanted it. Mukuro would honor that.

Chisa frowned, not completely satisfied.

“… Hey, how about this, Ikusaba? You and I can have guard shifts. That way, you can enjoy the party, too.”

Mukuro’s brow furrowed. Didn’t Togami just say she was the most qualified for this particular guard duty?

“Why…?” The soldier didn’t mean to come across as fragile or uncertain, but she was really caught off-guard.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Byakuya raised an eyebrow at the orange-haired woman.

Yukizome beamed happily at the solder.

“Because you deserve to be happy, too, silly! This is a **party** , not some warzone!” She then sent the heir a knowing look. “Besides, this party’s for **everyone** , remember, Togami-kun? Ikusaba can’t have fun if she’s out there all night. We’ve taken more than enough precautions… We’ll be fine.”

Byakuya reluctantly backed down after that. Mukuro herself felt… a little warm in her chest, for some strange reason she couldn’t discern. It’s not like she had wanted to be included like this, but still, to be given the opportunity… To be accepted… It was a nice feeling. Mukuro wouldn’t mind if she experienced this feeling more often.

After one more, quick, dirty debate, Mukuro had earned the right to first guard duty. Even if Sensei had the best of intentions, the soldier wouldn’t allow for anyone else to take the first shift. It was agreed shifts would take place hourly… Mukuro had recommended two hour shifts, but was shot down.

… At least she had first shift. That was what mattered.

Akane twitched toward the food tables yet again.

“So it’s settled, right? Then can we…?”

Byakuya chuckled heartily.

“You’re right. Let’s begin.”

“ALLLLLL RIIIIIIGHT!!!” Akane roared, puffing out her chest in determination as she charged.

“Kehehe… So the ‘banquet’ has finally commenced…” Gundham cackled to himself. “FWAHAHAHA! You better keep me entertained!”

And with that, the party really kicked off… Hajime gazed around the dining hall, seeing so many smiling, content faces. Teruteru. Sonia. Nekomaru. Kazuichi. Nagito. Mikan. Akane. Gundham. Mahiru. Ibuki. Chiaki. Even Saionji, in her own sadistic way, was laughing her ass off, the white insides of the sleeves of her kimono exposed as she covered her face in a poor attempt to muffle her cruel laughter. Byakuya and Fuyuhiko were more removed from the main partygoers, but at least the heir seemed satisfied with how things were turning out.

Yukizome-sensei herself was lit up like a Christmas tree as she bounced around the dining hall, socializing with everyone with such ease. Hajime had to smile at such a sight.

_‘I still don’t understand why we’re even having a party in the first place…’_ The brunet thought to himself. _‘But whatever the reason, everyone seems to be having fun.’_

“Hey, are we good? Can I finally eat?” Akane asked, even as she was stuffing her mouth excitedly.

“You’re already eating!” Kazuichi pointed out. The gymnast just laughed deliriously in joy.

“Haha… Ahaha…! I-I can’t stop… Hahahaha! I can’t stop my hands from shovin’ food in my face!” … Yep, she was clearly too far gone…

“Well, of course you can’t stop.” Teruteru teased with a proud grin. “These are **the world’s tastiest party dishes** , after all! No matter how full you feel, you can’t help but continue eating such exquisite delicacies~… That is what I cook! The **world’s tastiest dishes**!”

“Th-That’s quite scary…” Mikan mumbled, having a more meager helping, herself.

Hajime had to agree… From what little he had sampled so far, his hands were twitching, begging to follow Akane’s example. Glancing around the table he was at, seeing Sonia, Kazuichi, and Gundham, they were following a similar cautious approach. It’s not that they suspected Teruteru of anything underhanded…

No. It was the exact opposite. They knew the food was packed with maximum flavor, and that they’d very much enjoy the meal. But once they had a lapse in control, there’d be no going back… Akane was a living testament to that.

“… You’re not eating?” Akane asked with such craving in her eyes. “Then I’m gonna eat all this by myself~!”

Teruteru nodded sagely.

“I’ll make lots more in the kitchen and then I’ll bring it all out here, okay?”

Over by her table, Mahiru grinned, holding up her camera.

“Hey, everyone! While we’re at it, why don’t I take pictures for you guys?”

“Wow, that sounds wonderful! Please do!” Sonia eagerly accepted the offer.

As Mahiru took one picture after another, Hajime could truly feel himself relaxing. When they’d first come to this island, seeing everyone having fun had really bugged the brunet… But now that he was watching the party unfold, it felt reassuring. They were all friends who fought together… Friends who developed a sense of unity.

Time seemed to pass by in a haze for Hajime. With no clocks, he had no concept of it. People drifted from table to table. Teruteru was the one that was in and out the most, juggling new platters and empty dishes with each successive trip. Fuyuhiko had left the hall at some point, and Hajime wasn’t really sure what that was about; Byakuya seemed to notice, as well, though Yukizome-sensei had been preoccupied with Ibuki getting out of hand, at the time. It’s not like the yakuza and chef were the only ones to step out, however… There were others who departed, and then came back after a few minutes. The brunet just assumed they were using the bathroom.

Eventually, Hajime found himself approached by the enigmatic luckster.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Nagito breathed, gazing out at their class with his arms crossed and a faraway look in his eyes. “This camaraderie… I’ve wanted to see something like this for so long…”

Hajime frowned thoughtfully at the wistful tone.

“I thought you were a pretty average guy? Isn’t this kind of… normal? Classmates do stuff like this all the time, y’know.”

Nagito held up his hands peacefully, chuckling a bit, chagrined.

“Of course! I’d never insinuate otherwise. It’s just… the stuff with Monokuma, all the drama about killing… It hasn’t dragged them down, not completely. Even in a hurricane of Despair… Hope blossoms, like a fragile flower~…”

Hajime quirked an eyebrow at the analogy.

“Well, no murders have happened. The memory stuff is messed up… But Togami’s right. We’ll make it through this. We… everything that makes us unique, we’re still ourselves. Nothing can change that.”

Nagito tilted his head curiously.

“I certainly can’t deny that, but… Aren’t you the most curious? Each of us forgot our school memories, but **you** forgot your talent. Wouldn’t you say that a part of you is missing, because of that? Wouldn’t you like to be **whole** again?”

“O-Of course I’d **like** to know…” Hajime defended himself. “But… murder’s way too high a price. I don’t care what Monokuma says, I’m **not** going to kill over something stupid like memory! I’ll… I’ll become something ‘new’, if I have to. I don’t **have** to know what I was, in the past.”

Nagito hummed, sounding intrigued.

“That’s… not a bad answer. We’ll have to compare notes, later. I’m not sure if I agree with the premise, but I’d much rather you **show** me your answer, rather than argue it.”

“Wh-What does **that** mean…?” Hajime spluttered.

Nagito chuckled heartily, waving his hand casually.

“Don’t you worry, we’ll have plenty of time to talk about that later~… Enjoy yourself, Hinata-kun. None of us know how much time we have left, but I have a good feeling about you.” With another casual wave, the luckster took his leave.

… Hajime felt himself growing more and more uneasy. He didn’t want to jump to conclusions and assume Nagito was being ominous, but at the very least his words helped egg on that niggling thought that something was wrong, and Hajime just couldn’t place **what** that was…

Nekomaru suddenly grunted in concentration.

“I… must… return to my c-cottage…!” The team manager clenched a fist as he grimaced. Byakuya turned to the man sharply.

“Don’t be foolish… I won’t allow such selfish actions.” The heir snapped.

“Don’t stop me, Togami! There comes a time when a man knows he’s gotta go…!” Nekomaru fired back with such passion. “If I don’t go now… It would shame me as a man. Shitting my pants would totally shame me as a MAAAAAAANNNNNNNNN!!!”

“… So he **was** talking about the toilet!” Hajime muttered to himself, easily overhearing the conversation, even from across the room.

Byakuya scowled, brow pinching together in confusion.

“If you need to use the bathroom, there’s one here in the lodge. Why do you need to go back to your cottage?”

Nekomaru’s fist trembled as he clearly struggled with himself.

“I-I’ve been trying to use it many times,.. but the door just won’t open at all!”

Hiyoko muffled her giggles, waltzing on over from the entrance.

“He’s totally gonna shit himself~! You got a clean diaper in that case of yours, Togami?”

Byakuya sent her a withering glare.

“I’m not having this conversation right now… You two, leave. Nidai, no, that doesn’t mean you can leave the lodge. **Stay here** until the bathroom opens up.”

Chisa rubbed her chin, staring down at her watch.

“I should probably go relieve Ikusaba… Everyone, play nice!”

Ibuki giggled mischievously.

“Ibuki needs another round~! Ibuki’s starting to smell colors~!”

Chisa shot the heir a pleading look, which he returned with a sympathetic stare.

“… Hinata! You’re on babysitting duty until Sensei gets back. Keep Mioda **away** from the soda…” The musician was a handful, enough as it was. They didn’t need her hyped up on sugar, too.

Hajime spluttered at being ‘volunteered’ again without his consent.

“Wh-Why me?!”

“Just **do** it!” Byakuya barked. No way was he going to juggle keeping an eye on both Ibuki and the duralumin case. It paid to be able to delegate the dirty work…

“Oh shit! I’m gonna SHIIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!!” Nekomaru boomed.

“Shut up! Don’t you dare!” The heir commanded.

Akane was still shoveling quite the amount of food into her mouth.

“Hey! Is it really all right if I eat all of this?” She asked eagerly.

Of course the heir took offense to that.

“D-Don’t be an idiot! Make sure you leave some for me!”

Mahiru beamed as she waltzed over.

“Heeey, Togami! Everyone, c’mon! I’m gonna take a picture! All right, say ‘cheeeeeeeese’!” The photographer spontaneously took a number of photos.

“Hey! Why can’t you all act a little more mature…?” The heir huffed impatiently, but was distracted by an obnoxious beeping sound that echoed throughout the dining hall. “… Hm? What was that sound just now?”

A moment later… there was darkness. Not in a figurative sense, but quite literally. All the lights went out at once, and since the windows were covered up, it was a pitch blackness throughout the whole lodge.

“Uwah! It’s a b-blackout!” Mahiru cried out.

_‘A blackout…?’_ Hajime echoed in his head. He then grew more panicked as he realized that’s exactly what it was. _‘E-Eh?! A blackout?!’_

This didn’t bode well.

“Hey, I can’t see anything!” Kazuichi whined. And just like everyone else, Hajime was sure that the mechanic was stumbling around in the dark, too.

“I-It’s pitch black! My future is pitch black!” Ibuki screamed eccentrically.

The sound of frantic footsteps and other screams echoed throughout the hall, making Hajime nervous to move around too much.

“E-Everyone, calm down!” Yukizome-sensei’s voice rang out, clear and loud. “We have to stay calm at a time like this!”

… And then, that chaos that had been steadily growing… It **intensified** by the next turn of events. Hajime swore he heard some kind of slight sound, like something small getting struck… It would only be moments later that he would realize it was a match being lit. And that wasn’t the only thing that happened. Oh no.

No, **it got worse**. Out of **nowhere** , the sound of something igniting and rocketing across the room could be heard. It was a miracle no one got hit… But what really threw them into a frenzy was the great burst of light that **smashed** into the wall, over by the covered windows.

Hajime was too delirious from these sensations to pick up on where, exactly, the match had been lit. But that wasn’t important. **Why the hell were fireworks going off**?! Who the hell set off fireworks inside a building?!

Hajime didn’t get to ponder that thought for long. None of them did, in their panicked, screaming states. Moments after the first one had gone off, another match could be heard being struck, and Hajime knew what was coming next. Another volley of fireworks launched across the room, exploding along the wall in a brilliant array of lights. Hajime was a **little** more on the uptake this time, being able to make out silhouettes in the darkness. Honestly, it was all a blur for him, though.

“Somebody turn the damn lights on!” Akane barked. “I can’t eat like this, you know?!”

“Is this **really** the time for that?!” Mahiru cried out in disbelief.

“Wah! Don’t step on my feet!” Hiyoko whined gruffly, bumping into a table by the sound of things.

“WAAAAAAH!” Mikan wailed, making a big crashing sound as she tumbled over something in the dark.

“SHIIIIIITTTTT!!!” Nekomaru bellowed.

“What in the nine Hells is this madness?!” Gundham yelled out.

“I **said** watch where you’re **going** …!” The dancer grunted with exerted effort.

More chaotic sounds could be heard through the darkness, all around the room. And all of it was disjointed, having no distinguishable pattern for where sounds or voices were coming from within the room. Hajime just… didn’t know what was going on, and he really, **really** needed to know. Byakuya sounded as lost and panicked as Hajime felt.

“What the hell?! What’s going on here?!”

… Small mercies, whoever set off the damn fireworks **twice** hadn’t seen fit to release a third volley.

And just as he thought that, Hajime swore he could hear a third match being struck. Uh-oh.

“ **KOMAEDA**!” Byakuya abruptly bellowed out, followed by the sound of feverish running as people cried out from being slammed into by the heir in his frenzy to get to the luckster, for whatever reason.

The third fireworks exploded while all of that was happening, and… Hajime had honestly become desensitized by this point. The chaos was… just too much. The overstimulation was… just too much for Hajime. The sound of scuffling could be heard from somewhere nearby, but Hajime had stopped trying to make sense of the senseless.

“You guys? Where are you? Wasn’t the blackout just in the kitchen…?” Teruteru whispered in distress from what must have been the entrance to the dining hall.

“Perhaps the breaker overloaded…?” Sonia speculated, though she too sounded quite shaken from the three fireworks displays…

… That had clearly sparked a fire on the far end of the room. Oh boy.

“Everyone! Head **away** from the fire!” Byakuya barked out, exerting some effort as he seemed to heft something or someone off the floor. “Once you bump into a wall, just feel your way until you can find the doors to the dining hall! I will assist those who are not in a position to do so. **Move**!”

It seemed like an eternity, with everyone pushing and running over themselves to reach the walls and feel their way around to the doors. But once they had done so, it was a simple enough task to remember to head right and feel their way along more of the walls to get to the exit of the lodge. Around the time Hajime had gotten out into the hall, he heard Fuyuhiko’s voice from the direction of the office.

“The **fuck’s** going on, you assholes?!” The yakuza hissed.

“A-Are you kidding?!” Kazuichi griped. “You were with Pekoyama the entire time, why didn’t you reset the circuit breaker, ya jerk?!”

“The breaker is high up on the wall. None of us can reach it.” Peko smoothly cut in. “More importantly, what is the urgency? Why are you all out here?”

“Th-There’s a fire in the dining hall!” Mahiru cried out frightfully. “Somebody set off damn **fireworks** in there!”

“… What the fuck.” Fuyuhiko deadpanned in disbelief.

“OUTTA MY WAY!” Saionji screeched, apparently one of the stragglers out of the dining hall and trying to reach the exit.

Eventually, they all worked their way outside. It really helped when the door was opened and some light could finally shine into the lodge, no matter how slight it was. The last ones out were Yukizome-sensei, Mikan, Byakuya, who had night vision goggles on… and Nagito, who the heir had a firm grip on.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” Mukuro spoke up in alarm, advancing on the heir threateningly. He held up his hand authoritatively, and even Yukizome-sensei placed a hand on the soldier’s shoulder, halting her.

“Is this everyone?” Byakuya warily asked, trying to look around and try to ascertain how many were standing outside at that moment. As much as he wanted to interrogate the luckster, the safety of everyone was still on his mind.

“I-I think so…” Mahiru mumbled, looking quite spooked, and for good reason.

Hajime also looked around with glazed eyes, trying to count the number of heads. People started whispering amongst themselves, but it was Nekomaru who got everyone’s attention.

“Hey… I figured she just raced out of there, once she got out… But where’s Owari?”

Mukuro shook her head.

“None of you guys ran beyond the pool or hotel.”

Kazuichi scratched the back of his head as he peeked around the corner of the lodge.

“Doesn’t look like she’s behind it, either…”

“Not on this side, either.” Peko checked the other side, to be safe.

Byakuya’s grip on Nagito’s shoulder tightened.

“H-Hey, Togami…” Hajime licked his lips as he tried to speak without completely falling apart. He still felt so overwhelmed from everything. “D-Didn’t you have **everyone** bring their GPS thing tonight…?”

The heir’s scowl deepened, and he fished in his pocket for the tablet that would reveal all of their locations. He reluctantly released the luckster into Yukizome-sensei’s care. As he powered on the device, he noticed right away that one tracker was isolated from everybody else.

“She’s… still in there?” Byakuya turned back toward the lodge, on high alert. Yet as he did, the sound of an obnoxious siren could be heard, off in the distance.

The siren came closer and closer… And finally, they were able to identify it – a firetruck with Hope’s Peak’s logo, and Monokuma dressed in fireman attire at the wheel. It came to an abrupt halt near the lodge, after knocking chairs and umbrellas into the pool in its wake.

“STOOOP! Stop, stop, stop~!” Monokuma eccentrically commanded the children, patting his belly contently. “We got a call about a disturbance! We’re gonna hafta ask you to stay out here ‘til the fire’s been put out~!”

“’W-We’…?” Chisa echoed faintly, not really getting who else Monokuma was referring to. But that became clear in the next moment.

“Get your ass out here, Monomi! We got **work** to do!” Monokuma barked, dragging the rabbit out by the ears.

“OOOUUUCH! Don’t pull on my ears!” The rabbit wailed.

But rather than listen, the bear hastened them inside, dragging a fire hose with them. Several painfully stressful minutes later, the stuffed animal duo returned outside, and the lights within the lodge flickered back on.

“Welp! My work here is done~!” The bear sighed contently, patting his belly again. “I could sure go for a cold one after working up a sweat like that~…”

Byakuya ignored the bear’s ramblings.

“Enough! What about Owari?!”

Monokuma tilted his head curiously.

“’Oh, wow, whee!’?” The bear giggled at his own bad pun. “That sort of investigation falls on **you** guys! My job is to make sure you can conduct that investigation~! See you soooooon~!”

Hopping back in the firetruck, yanking Monomi with him, Monokuma drove off. Needless to say, none of them were eager to go inside, now.

“… She can’t be!” Nekomaru clutched both sides of his head in distress.

Byakuya raised a finger to his temple in thought.

“Indeed, that hasn’t been confirmed. For all our sakes… I pray she is only unconscious, or trapped.” The heir then crossed his arms and barked out. “Hinata! Nidai! Both of you come with me. The rest of you stay here. We will retrieve you if the worst has come to pass.”

Nervously, Hajime trailed after Byakuya and Nekomaru as they reentered the lodge. The hallway seemed unaffected by all that had happened… but the dining hall was most certainly in disarray and not as they had last seen it. A table had even collapsed at one point, spilling food out on the floor. Hajime wasn’t sure when **that** had happened, but he supposed that wasn’t the most worrying thing he saw… Because aside from the chairs and food all scattered about, there was…

“Blood splatters…” Hajime whispered as he froze, gazing at the small bloodstains he saw on the floor, on the left side of the room between the collapsed table and the intact table, near the front.

Byakuya clenched the tablet tighter, and marched up to that intact table. Apparently, that’s where the signal from Akane’s tracker was coming from. Briefly, the heir paused. After all, he had a feeling… that once he lifted the veil, everything was going to change. And not for the better.

… But he couldn’t hold it off forever. The others were waiting outside… And judging from the look on Nekomaru’s pale, grimacing face as he clenched a fist, if they hesitated for much longer, the team manager might suffer a heart attack from the stress.

He deserved to know. They all did.

Byakuya lifted the table cloth and draped it over the food on top of the table. Immediately Hajime’s vision was filled with a hazy red as he caught glimpses of Akane’s blood-soaked back, a knife sticking out of her, and another blood-soaked table cloth lying next to her body under the table.

Not a moment later, the monitor in the room flickered on with a Monokuma Announcement of some kind.

“A **body** has been discovered~!”

… Hajime wasn’t sure when he had collapsed to his knees. But that was probably due to the fact he was focused on Nekomaru’s sorrowful, bellowing wail. As well as the tablet that slipped from Byakuya’s nerveless fingers as he soaked in the sight of what he considered to be his first failure as a leader.

Akane Owari was dead. And she wasn’t coming back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MHJoker4Ever, being optimistic: I might get to the investigation this week!
> 
> Nagito: Hahaha~ You're cute. :3 
> 
> Here comes the flood~~~ Are you guys ready? A Danganronpa game really is like a dam breaking - once one good crack forms, it'll spiderweb across the surface and shatter the wall. One domino falls, so too must the rest~ 
> 
> "Welcome, inmates. You are now taking your first, tentative steps towards a better world. A world of fun, mischief and best of all, a world where the only person you need to answer to is yours truly~ I know what you guys are thinking. Is it all true? Is life at Joker Enterprises everything it's rumored to be? Sadly, it is. All of it. But look on the bright side. At least you know what you're getting yourself into and I can promise you this. You'll never leave."
> 
> So! As a casual reminder, Chapter 1 tends to be where you get your feet wet in the Despair. It's only going to get harder, more emotional from here, so bear that in mind~ :3


	9. Chapter 1, Part 6: Destination Despair

“A body has been discovered~!” Monokuma’s voice rang out across the island via the monitors. “Now then, after a certain amount of time has passed, the **Class Trial** will begin!”

Hajime should have seen that obnoxious announcement for the call-to-arms that it was. After all, there was only one person it could have referred to. Of course the others were going to rush in to confirm with their own eyes. As it was, Hajime could only remain in his drained kneeling position as Nekomaru just kept screaming and screaming, and Byakuya clenched his eyes shut and bowed his head slightly.

“O-Owa…ri…?” Sonia was the first to give a broken response to seeing the body under the table. “Wh-Why is Owari…?”

“No…” Mahiru whispered before shrieking sorrowfully. “NOOOOOOOO!”

Other screams soon joined the photographer’s, but Hajime could only sit there, gazing quietly at the **body of his former friend**.

“Wh-Why?!” Chisa had gone pale as she gazed at the lifeless body of her former charge.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!” Kazuichi screeched, shaking a fist in outrage as tears streamed down his face.

“GYAAAAAAAAAAAH!” Teruteru cried out, clutching at his head with both hands and reeling back in shock.

“Th-This is… some kind of mistake…!” Hiyoko was as pale as everyone else, staring down at the body with wide, petrified eyes. “Don’t mess with me! This is impossible!”

“This… can’t be real blood, right?” Ibuki’s hands had also flown to her face, and as opposed to her usual energy it was clear she was just as distressed as everybody else. “It’s gotta be something like jam or sauce… ‘Cause if not… then, this… A-blub-blub-blub-blub!”

The musician started foaming at the mouth. Monokuma chose that time to pop up again, strutting around until he was closer to the front of the group.

“Good gracious… Things quickly took a turn for the worse…My, my, now this is interesting~!” The bear rubbed the back of his head bashfully. “On this tropical paradise known as Jabberwock Island, the **very first murder** has finally taken place!”

“Murder…?” Hajime croaked out, staring at the monochrome bear with bloodshot eyes.

“H-Hold on!” Mikan wailed. “Then does that mean…?”

“Of course! Owari… was killed by **one of you**. If you look at the body, you can tell instantly. She was obviously murdered. Look, she has such a horrible expression on her face, don’tcha think…? A face filled with regret that her life was ended by force, all thanks to someone’s selfish desires… To have a dying face such as this… If this isn’t murder, then what the heck could it be? Owari was most likely sacrificed… by someone who reeeally wanted to leave this island.”

Hajime’s face became stony as he glared back at the bear.

“Lies… It’s all lies! You’re lying that she was murdered!” As soon as he screamed that, a thick, muddy feeling of despair swelled within his body… Which meant… that he accepted the fact Owari was murdered.

The evidence was right in front of his eyes… What else could he do but accept it?

“Enough.” Byakuya curled his hand into a fist and bared his teeth and glared at Monokuma. “You made certain promises, did you not? A murder has happened. Does that mean the killer, whoever he or she is, can leave the island? And what of our memories? I suppose you will be returning those to us, as well…”

Chisa whirled on the Togami heir with an ashen and distraught expression.

“T-Togami-kun?!”

Monokuma’s paws flew over his mouth.

“Upu… Upupupupupupupupu…” The bear belted out a hearty laugh, clutching his stomach. “Oh, Togami-kun! I hope you’re not **serious** about that. I mean, if you’re checking the fine print, that’s great! But if you really thought it was going to be that **easy** , then you’re as gullible as a newborn babe~! Committing a murder and expecting an express ticket off this island… is like waltzing past the cashier guy without paying~!”

The heir’s body trembled as he growled impatiently.

“Then… what more would you have us do? Will you finally explain the seventh Rule?”

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“But of course~! Maybe I should’ve said something sooner so even the laymen and laywomen would understand, but what can I say? I was tickled pink when I thought about **certain people** feeling nostalgic, watching this. But that’s neither here nor there.” The bear mischievously showed his dark, grinning half. “Ahem! A murder has occurred~! Therefore, we shall hold a Class Trial where you shmucks debate **whodunit**! It’ll be a clash between the **blackened** killer and the **spotless** students! After you’ve talked it over, the result will be determined by **popular vote**. If you guys pick the right person, then only the **blackened** will be punished, and the rest of you guys will be allowed to continue your happy-go-lucky tropical life. But if you pick the wrong person… I’ll punish everyone **besides** the culprit! And they will be allowed to leave this island~! And just so we’re toootally slap-you-silly clear, when I say **punishment** , I mean I’m gonna execute your cute little asses~! Bzzt-bzzt goes the electric chair~! SWISH goes the guillotine~! I’ve got something unique in mind for **each** of you, so know that when your time comes… It’ll be a hoot. Aaaaahahaha~!”

The room had gone very quiet at Monokuma’s explanation. When he concluded it, that silence was broken by indignant screams and shouts.

“The **fuck** you just say?!” Fuyuhiko seethed, hands twitching. “You didn’t mention **any** of this in that damn rule…!”

“He **did** suggest the killer was better off not getting caught…” Mahiru pointed at the bear accusingly. “But that’s not the point! Why the hell should all of us get punished just because we get a guess wrong?! Where’s the justice in that?!”

Monokuma snickered.

“Such a smart chimpanzee~… Ever so subtly claiming you’re not the killer~!”

“Th-There is no justice in that! None at all!” Sonia cried with a pale complexion.

“WHYYYYYY?!” Nekomaru cried, clutching both sides of his head.

“ **You can’t do this**!” Chisa added her own hysterical cries to the growing number of voices.

Monokuma huffed and raised a claw threateningly.

“Do we all need to go through the whole Monobeasts thing again? I’d hate to bust up your crime scene, but if another lesson needs to be taught…”

Byakuya clenched his fists at his side, scowl deepening.

“Enough. Do not challenge him. This is your leader’s order.”

“T-T-Togami-kun…?” The housekeeper glanced over at the heir in both concern and distress.

Byakuya shook his head, gritting his teeth.

“I will not lose anyone else to senseless violence! Cooperate for now… Our time will come.” He crossed his arms, eyes sharply looking around the room. “We have no business denying any of this, anyway. Owari… is dead. As her friends… it falls on us to find her killer. If we do nothing because it’s ‘impossible’, or ‘unfair’, we trivialize her life. Owari’s killer… made their choice. Now we must make ours.”

The room went silent again at the heir’s harsh, weighty words. Abruptly, Monokuma belted out another cackle.

“That’s riiight~! An impassioned battle between you guys and the culprit has begun! I guess it’s already well underway ‘cause the first shot was fired with Owari’s death… Or, no, one better! It **began** when one of you assholes plotted to kill someone~! That’s the real kicker!”

Monomi popped in at that moment, crying out urgently.

“H-Hey! What are you saying?! Everyone! Please! You cannot, you should not, believe what Monokuma says!”

Monokuma giggled.

“No matter how much you interfere… there is only ever one truth~! On my grandfather’s name!” Monokuma declared passionately.

Monomi tilted her head in confusion.

“You have a grandpa?”

“On my grandfather’s grave!” Monokuma nodded sagely.

“Grave? Your grandpa is dead? What happened to him?!” Monomi demanded.

“On my grandfather’s plane!” Monokuma continued nonsensically.

“What happened to your grandpa?! Did his plane crash?” Monomi asked.

Monokuma hung his head miserably.

“Hmm… I don’t even know where to begin… At this rate…” The bear punched Monomi again, savagely. “You ain’t my comedy partner anymore!”

Monomi wailed as she flew through the air.

“Waaah! It hurts so much when you hit me with a charging corkscrew attack!”

Monokuma raised his claw threateningly at the rabbit.

“Didja see that?! This stunning display of power! Defy your big brother and I will show you no mercy! I will harden my heart and teach you a lesson you won’t soon forget!”

Monomi popped back on her feet, all bloody on her head from the attack.

“Ugh… If only I had my Magic Stick… I’d be able to fight back against Monokuma…” The rabbit sobbed.

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let’s just leave this whiny rabbit loser alone and get on with the investigation. Now then… in the spirit of **lovey doubt** and **dovey deception** , put your heart and soul into investigating~! Yahoooooo! I wish you the best of luck~!” Monokuma clutched his belly as he laughed gleefully and departed.

He left their grief-stricken selves alone in their despair…

“Wh-What does this mean…? I don’t understand this at all…!” Mahiru whispered hoarsely, her hair puffed out a little from shaking her head vigorously so much.

Peko bowed her head, gritting her teeth.

“A search for Owari’s killer… Why did it turn out like this…?!”

Kazuichi massaged his forehead as he moaned.

“Ugh… Gimme a break… Why do I… have to be involved in this horrible situation…?”

Monomi tittered about nervously, poking her paws together.

“U-Um… You can’t doubt each other… Cuz… you’re all friends…”

Hiyoko’s eyes darkly bored into Monomi, and she quivered emotionally.

“Except that girl… really did get killed, right?” The blonde hissed darkly. “And if we don’t find out who the killer is, we’re all gonna get killed, right?”

Sonia clutched at the bow over her chest in anguish.

“That being said, I cannot abide by this! Now that I have finally made friends… There is no way I can doubt them…!”

“Seriously? Did you even listen to what I said?” Hiyoko spat venomously. “It doesn’t matter if you can ‘abide’ by this or not… We gotta do this to survive, right? Then we have no choice but to do it.”

“Nooo!” Monomi wailed, trying to make a determined face. “Friends doubting friends is a major no-no!”

Kazuichi shook his fist at the rabbit.

“Argh! Shut up! Just go away already, you useless piece of trash!”

“Ha-wa-wa! Threats are scary!” Monomi cried out, vanishing.

Hajime stared off into nothingness, feeling utterly numb.

“Do we… really have to do it…?”

Mahiru clutched the strap for her chest sorrowfully.

“No… I don’t want to do something like that…”

“I-I don’t want to do it… either!” Mikan wailed. “I-It sounds so scary!”

Peko snapped her eyes open, gazing around at everyone.

“However, it is just as Saionji said. If we’re going to get killed for not doing it… then we must do it.”

“Survival instinct, huh…” Fuyuhiko muttered and looked off to the side, still clenching his fists in frustration.

Hajime half-expected Nagito to pipe up with a hopeful speech about not doubting one another, knowing he was just the type of guy to do that – but the luckster hadn’t spoken a single word since before the blackout. And as he snuck a glance over at the aforementioned luckster, Hajime couldn’t help growing antsier. The white-haired boy’s face was a blank mask, but if his wide eyes were any indication, he hadn’t been anticipating Monokuma’s rules to be like this.

… What **had** Komaeda been trying to do, anyway? Togami had gotten furious about something, the brunet remembered that much; but was it really Komaeda that was setting off those fireworks during the blackout? Was it something else?

Why wasn’t Komaeda saying anything?

This hopeless reality… That was the real enemy they needed to fight. If they were going to survive… they had to fight this.

“Ah, before you start, can I say something?” Chiaki piped up, all of a sudden. “In closed-circle detective games, the player usually has to decide on who’s going to guard the crime scene… What should we do?”

Hiyoko tapped her chin.

“Oh yeah, it would be bad if the killer destroyed the evidence and got away with it.”

“D-Destroyed the evidence…?” Mikan stared at the dancer in horror at the suggestion.

Ibuki pointed towards Nekomaru.

“Look, over there! That big, bulky, brawny guy is perfect for the guard job!”

Nekomaru clenched his fist in anguish for a few moments before he clutched both sides of his head and ran off, sobbing.

“O-OOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

Kazuichi scratched his cheek nervously.

“That guy… has a sensitive heart, despite his looks…” He muttered.

Byakuya shot the mechanic a reproving glare.

“Souda. Out of all of us, of course he would be the one most affected. His help would have been much appreciated… But I understand his feelings, in this matter.” The heir raised a finger to his temple astutely. “Someone else will have to take on this duty.”

Mahiru looked down forlornly.

“Um… I can be the one who watches the crime scene… I don’t have enough confidence to investigate the body… and it’s not like I have the brains, either… I’ll just stay by Owari’s side. That’s the least I can do. That’s what guard duty is, right?”

Byakuya crossed his arms, nodding indulgently at her offered help.

“Very well. We will be counting on you.”

Mikan poked her fingers together nervously.

“K-Koizumi…” She then straightened up, raising her voice to be heard. “Um… um! I’ll do my best! I’ll do my very best… to not get in your way! I-I have medical training so i-if it’s not too much trouble, I can perform an autopsy… Please.”

“Then she’ll be staying, too… Is that alright, Togami?” The gamer tilted her head.

Byakuya snorted, keeping his arms crossed.

“I would have asked for her assistance regardless, yet that volunteer spirit is commendable. Thank you, Tsumiki.” The heir nodded towards the nurse, who melted at the praise a bit.

“And what, specifically, should we be doing now?” Ibuki tilted her head. “Ibuki has nooooo idea~!”

“Obviously, we search this lodge for clues.” Byakuya decided for them. “This site… this is where the incident occurred. The bulk of our investigation will be here. I will now assign each of you a location to investigate, to ensure a pure and just investigation.”

“Huuuh?” Hiyoko tilted her head obnoxiously. “You’re still acting like the leader, even after you **obviously** failed to protect us?”

The heir breathed through his nose and pinched the bridge of it, closing his eyes.

“I… am aware of my failings, at this point. A reminder is unnecessary.” He then reopened his eyes, staring sternly at them all as he crossed his arms again. “I cannot do anything for Owari. But I **can** protect all of you.”

Fuyuhiko snorted derisively.

“You want us to believe that shit, even now? Even in the best case, the killer **dies**.”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes at the yakuza.

“I will reiterate myself. The killer made their choice. It is now up to us to make ours.” He gazed out among the students. “Unless… the killer had a change of heart, after hearing Monokuma’s rules. Well? Will you speak up now, and save us grief and hardship? Will you atone for what was clearly an act of desperation? Or do you not care that the rest of us will be killed, if you do not?”

No one responded to Byakuya’s cold, sharp words. Each of them just looked around fearfully and suspiciously. Some, like Yukizome-sensei, were still staring off into space with a deer-caught-in-headlights look. Hajime cringed. He knew that everything Togami said was technically true… After all, the killer wouldn’t have known about the trial rules – he would think that most people would have a pang of conscience, in a situation like this.

… But at the same time, Hajime understood. The killer had committed their deed. Monokuma closed off all exits. Their life was now at stake. The killer had to be scared out of their mind right now… Only the strongest willed people would be able to handle this kind of pressure, and if Akane’s death was an act of desperation, how likely was it that the killer **had** that kind of will? By the prolonged stretch of silence, Hajime suspected fear trumped conscience, in this case…

The heir sighed sadly at no one coming forward.

“Very well. I will take your silence as your answ…”

“It was me, Togami-kun.”

All eyes snapped to the luckster, who had up until now remained silent. He had his arms crossed and was having a staring contest with Byakuya, who was glaring at him the hardest. The others stared at the luckster in waves of fear, skepticism, and… and **hope**. Hajime could definitely detect some hope in those gazes. The hope that it would be that simple. That they wouldn’t have to go through a whole guessing game and gamble with their lives.

And… And something else. Hajime couldn’t decipher some of the emotions written on some of their faces, but there was **something** else there…

“Komaeda-kun?” Yukizome-sensei was getting paler by the minute.

“You?” The heir repeated, appearing not the least bit convinced. Nagito bit down on his lip hard before nodding firmly.

Kazuichi shook his fist, a little spittle flying from his mouth as he yelled.

“H-H-He just confessed! He **confessed**! Let’s skip the dumb trial thing and just execute this psycho…!”

Togami’s scowl deepened as the frantic, hysterical cries of others were quick to join the mechanic’s.

“EEEEEEEHHH?!” Ibuki clutched both sides of her face in shock.

“K… Komaeda…! You killed Owari?!” Mahiru demanded, pointing at him in disbelief.

“To think your soul was **that** drenched in darkness…!” Tanaka reeled back, astonished.

“AVRLI LAVIIIGNE!” Teruteru clutched both sides of his head as his hair blew dramatically backward. “ **You’re** the one that soiled my banquet?!”

“Wh-Why?! Why did you kill her?” Mikan clasped her hands together and squeezed her eyes shut tight, looking pale.

“K-Komaeda-kun…!” The soldier immediately ran up to the luckster, grabbing both of his shoulders. “D-Don’t go making false confessions! Y-You can’t be the killer!”

Nagito chuckled weakly at her defense.

“But I caused the blackout! I even told Togami a murder was going to happen… And most incriminating of all, Togami-kun found **that** on me, right? That damning evidence?”

Sonia nervously played with her hands as her gaze panned over to the heir. As did everyone else.

“T… Togami? Is this true?”

Byakuya thinned his lips, narrowing his eyes at the princess.

“… Someone snuck me a note last night, declaring a murder would happen. That much is…” He trailed off as he got cut off by Yukizome-sensei, whose eyes had become pinpricks.

“W-We don’t know who sent that note, though! Just because Komaeda-kun knew about it…!” The orange-haired woman seemed to be floundering for a good enough sounding excuse, but was coming up blank. Hajime winced at the sight. To be fair, he didn’t want to just blame Komaeda, either… All they had was the luckster’s confession to go on.

Hiyoko darkly glared at everyone.

“That’s not all he said! What’s that **evidence** you found, Togami?” The dancer hissed.

“… I wasn’t hiding it.” Byakuya huffed, taking out a familiar-looking knife – it looked just like the one deeply embedded in Owari’s back. “I was going to reveal it eventually. Even if his confession should be scrutinized, having a knife on his person, even after I searched him…!”

The heir found himself cut off again, and Hajime simply wasn’t surprised by this point.

“Th-There you have it! **He had a knife**! How the hell can he talk himself outta that?!” Kazuichi pointed at the knife in outrage.

Byakuya’s lips curled in frustration as he clenched a fist.

“A knife that is pristine, I might add! And furthermore, he’s not even trying to **deny** it…!”

“Who cares if the knife’s clean?!” Hiyoko fired back, glaring at the heir heatedly. “None of us had a knife, and you **know** that! Why are you defending him?!”

Byakuya pinched the bridge of his nose.

“If you would let me finish a single sentence, you would know that I’m not **defending** him, I am merely saying that…!”

Ibuki tilted her head curiously, hands clasped behind her back.

“Say… Didn’t Togami-chan call Komaeda-chan out during the party and tackle him? Ibuki’s pretty sure that’s what she heard!”

Mahiru’s glare became withering as she focused it on the luckster, who just watched them all silently with interest.

“Oh, he didn’t just call him out! He almost knocked me over! What were you in such a huge rush for?!” She briefly glared over at the heir.

Byakuya huffed again, impatiently.

“Could you not tell someone was setting off fireworks?! In case it hasn’t become clear to you all, **Komaeda was the one doing it**! During the blackout, I was the only one that could apprehend him. I tried to avoid knocking you people over, but haste was of the utmost importance…” The heir looked to the side in frustration. “And in the end… I still failed to prevent the third firework from going off. If I’d just been a little faster, maybe the fire wouldn’t have broken out, and Owari would still be with us…”

Peko frowned as she recalled a detail.

“That’s right… You had night vision goggles. In that pitch darkness, only you would have had the ability to see.”

Fuyuhiko placed a hand on his hip and hung his head, sighing.

“Even so… Don’t you think that makes him pretty damn suspicious? If he could see, he could say whatever he wanted, and we wouldn’t know if that was the truth or not.”

Byakuya turned sharply on the yakuza.

“What?” The blond demanded in outrage.

“That’s not the only thing suspicious about him!” Mukuro accused, fixing the heir with a potent glare. “I was there when he searched Komaeda-kun for the party! He didn’t have a knife on him then! And he didn’t have access to the lodge ‘til the party, so he couldn’t have hidden it somewhere.”

Chisa wilted at the direction this discussion was headed.

“Th… That’s true, but…” The poor woman just seemed so lost. Hajime winced in sympathy before turning to the soldier carefully.

“Y-Yeah, but… Togami was collecting all the dangerous weapons in that case Pekoyama was guarding! He was trying to keep everyone safe. I… I don’t think he’d set Komaeda up like this…”

“That’s just what he wants you to think!” Mukuro coldly snapped. “Even if he was just being paranoid, night vision goggles are a weirdly specific thing to have prepared on a night we just **happened** to have a blackout! And he had a case that he kept at his side at all times, didn’t he? You can’t say he **couldn’t** have had a couple of knives hidden in there!”

Chiaki tapped her chin, staring up at the ceiling in thought.

“Togami-kun received that murder note, right? He probably prepared a lot of items, just in case. It’s not proof he knew a blackout was going to happen…”

“It’s not proof he **didn’t** know, either.” Mukuro fired back. “We don’t even know what he had in that second case!”

Byakuya snorted derisively.

“There’s an easy way to rectify that. Simply check the contents of the case, I left it open.” The heir clicked his tongue as Mahiru volunteered to do it.

“There’s… some security equipment in here…” The redhead muttered as she studiously examined the contents. “Gloves, a taser, a night stick, tear gas, the key to the other duralumin case… and a weird, empty case.”

As the photographer held it up for everyone to see, Byakuya huffed.

“For the night vision goggles, obviously. Do you see now? I had nothing lethal.”

Mukuro narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

“Like we can just believe that. Did anyone search **you** and your belongings, before the party? Or were you conveniently exempt from that?”

Byakuya balled his hand into a fist, yet again. But it was Chisa who spoke up.

“I-I searched Togami-kun! And… And I knew what he had in that case. Togami-kun’s innocent.”

Mukuro’s mouth became a thin line, but she turned her head away sharply, apparently all out of arguments… for now. Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head, chuckling nervously.

“S-So… We’re back to the psycho bein’ the culprit. Are we just gonna ignore his confession?!”

“Komaeda-kun is **not** a psychopath…!” Mukuro hissed, taking a warning step toward the mechanic, who reeled back in fear.

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, frowning.

“We can’t rush this, you guys… Even if we got Komaeda’s confession, we should still investigate the murder because we only have the one shot to get it right…”

Mikan trembled a little, frightfully.

“B-B-But… if there’s any other possibility, d-does that mean you doubt… the rest of us…?” She squeaked and threw her arms up defensively in front of her face. “I-I’m sooorryyy…! I-I j-just don’t s-see how anyone else could have done it…!”

Ibuki tilted her head curiously.

“Komaeda-chan hasn’t said much… He just kinda screamed, ‘I did it!’ and then clammed up!”

“Well, he **did** also say he caused the blackout, and that Togami found that knife on him…” Mahiru muttered, tapping her chin as she slightly bowed her head in thought.

Prompted, Nagito casually waved and laughed lightly.

“I will abide by whatever you amazing Ultimates decide to do! The truth will come to light eventually, right~? Whether by your or Monokuma’s hands!”

Hajime stared at the luckster strangely.

“I… don’t think we have a choice here. If Monokuma tells us the answer, and we’re wrong, we’re goners.” He clenched a fist and squeezed his eyes shut tight in frustration. “It’s not like I want to doubt anyone… **But we only get one shot**. We can’t afford to just skip ahead to voting time… Investigating Owari’s death isn’t just for our sake, but hers, too. She’d want us to find who killed her.”

Byakuya stared at the brunet and nodded his approval.

“… Well said. I was right to pick you as my Assistant.”

_‘… I still haven’t agreed to that.’_ Hajime sweatdropped.

Hajime’s words seemed to mollify everyone, at least for the most part. Some still seemed on edge about the whole thing. Teruteru, Kazuichi, and Mikan appeared the most antsy of the group. Hiyoko appeared to be scrutinizing Nagito the most, though her eyes would pan over to Mikan at times, as well. Ibuki seemed happy enough to go along with an investigation, as did Chiaki. Mahiru and Sonia seemed troubled, but resigned to the investigation. Peko, Gundham, Fuyuhiko, and Nagito seemed the most calm and composed. Mukuro was a bit vindictive toward the people that were leaning towards Komaeda being the killer, inclining her chin at them in a slight gloat. Yukizome-sensei, though… She still seemed so lost. Hajime really couldn’t help feeling bad for her.

… That left Nekomaru, of course. But he had run off, pained by Akane’s death the most. Somebody would definitely have to check on him, later.

Before they could decide on the next course of action, Monokuma popped up again randomly.

“TA-DAAA~! You thought it was time for the investigation, buuut… The Monokuma File~!” He produced what appeared to be similar to the tablet related to the GPS trackers. “Just as I thought, you amateurs need this, right?”

Hajime blinked owlishly as he reluctantly accepted the device.

“What the hell… is a Monokuma File?”

Monokuma hung his head in depression.

“Jeez, explaining the rules all the time reeeally breaks my bones…” He perked up again, showing his dark, grinning side. “Well, it’s not like I have bones in the first place… Like, don’t even make me say such lame jokes! Let’s seeeeee… The Monokuma File contains precise and detailed information regarding the dead body. I’ve brought it to ya so you guys can smoothly proceed with the investigation. I’m such a nice guy~! I’m so nice I wanna be known as the Mother Teresa of the Mascot World!”

Monomi raised her paws in outrage.

“’Nice’, you say… You’re such a selfish meanie!”

Monokuma tilted his head cutely.

“My, my, my… Monomi the Meaningless Mascot, you’re still here?”

“Don’t put me in the meaningless mascot category!” Monomi cried in outrage.

Monokuma raised a claw threateningly at her.

“C’mon, let’s go! Your turn is already up! Hurry up and get the hell outta here with me!” He proceeded to yank her by the ears to haul her out of the dining hall.

“Ouchie! Don’t pull my ears! They’re gonna come off!” She wailed, being dragged away.

Hajime deadpanned at their undignified exit.

_‘They’re… finally gone… The Monokuma File, huh? Guess it couldn’t hurt to check it out…’_ He touched the tablet’s screen, scrolling down to check the contents. _‘The victim’s body was discovered in the dining hall of the old building near the Hotel Mirai… The estimated time of death is around 11:30pm… The victim was repeatedly stabbed over ten times in the back, from the neck to the waist, resulting in death… Aside from that, the body has no other external injuries, and no chemicals such as poison were detected.’_

He glanced from the File to Akane’s body and heaved a sigh. So… Akane really was dead. He wished he could deny it… But someone really did kill her. And it was up to them to discover who that killer was, and why they did it. They had… no choice. To survive… They had to prepare for the worst.

No matter what the truth was, Hajime was determined to find it so Akane could rest in peace.

~*~

“Where are we even supposed to begin?” Hajime asked uncertainly, after Byakuya had directed most of the others to inspect other areas.

The lodge would be the biggest site of the investigation. Yet there would be a couple of other hotspots – the kitchen in Hotel Mirai’s main building, Akane’s cottage, and searching for where Nidai had run off to, just to name the big ones. Byakuya insisted that Nagito would have to remain watched, and kept out of the lodge so that they could have an impartial investigation; Chisa had volunteered for that duty, feeling more than a little overwhelmed by everything. Hajime wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to have her watching a guy that was confessing to be the killer – it couldn’t be good on her psyche, especially if he decided to “confess” more things to her… But Byakuya approved of the arrangement, so it was out of Hajime’s hands.

Byakuya, Hajime, Mukuro, Mahiru, and Mikan were the only ones left in the dining hall. Mahiru volunteered to help watch over the crime scene, since Nekomaru had run off. Mikan followed suit and offered to perform an autopsy so they could glean more details about the murder. The heir requested that Hajime and Mukuro both stay behind, as they had some things to go over, apparently.

“Hmph. Don’t get too ahead of yourself.” Byakuya snorted, looking off to the side sternly. “I will be the one conducting this investigation – the two of you will be mere extensions of me. Appendages, if you will. Brainstorming is fine, but in cases like this, it is best you just take a step back and allow me to chart our course. As future head of the Togami Corporation, my leadership skills are unparalleled; you would be running around like headless chickens without me. Now, the easiest place to start is how the blackout occurred… After all, with only a few exceptions, we were all gathered here in the dining hall. This required an elaborate setup…”

“I hope you’re not going to suggest **I** triggered the blackout…” Mukuro dryly quipped. “I was on guard duty outside the lodge. I didn’t set one foot inside until after all of you came rushing outside.”

Byakuya shook his head, raising his finger to his temple in thought.

“No, no. I highly doubt it was you, Pekoyama, or Hanamura. The reason being… that all of you would have had to navigate **to** the dining hall after triggering the blackout, committed the murder, and then get yourselves back to your posts to evade suspicion. Something very hard to do without the necessary equipment, such as night vision goggles or some kind of light. … And we didn’t see any sort of light, aside from Komaeda’s fireworks. Not to mention, my thorough search of all of you turned up no goggles.”

Hajime scratched the side of his head.

“Plus… I mean, well, Ikusaba, Pekoyama, or Hanamura **could** have done it. But them being isolated during the blackout, that puts more suspicion on them. Kind of counterintuitive, if the whole point is to not get caught. It’d be easier to hide amongst the majority of people with alibis, and arrange some kind of trick to cause the blackout.”

Byakuya nodded sagely.

“My thoughts exactly. Though I will concede that Kuzuryu had stepped out and never came back.”

“… Oh. He was actually with Pekoyama, in the office.” Hajime nervously chuckled as the heir’s eyes bored into him, critically. “I-I heard him when we were all rushing outside, when the fire started! He sounded as confused as we were.”

Byakuya humphed, craning his head to the side again as he kept his arms crossed.

“I will have to speak with Pekoyama later, about this. If Kuzuryu did anything while in the office, it’s paramount that we know. For now, I will accept that those two have a strong alibi, if they were together the whole time…”

Mukuro arched an eyebrow skeptically.

“Really? Even though the breaker is located in the office?”

“It’s high up on the wall.” Byakuya reasoned, returning the soldier’s sharp gaze. “Barring the possibility that they might be accomplices to one another, their alibis guarantee that neither of them could have tripped the breaker. This, in turn, means… that the blackout was triggered through some other method. What I am most curious about… is what happened just before the blackout occurred. I feel that it is possibly related.”

Hajime’s eyes widened as he recalled that detail, too.

“That beeping noise! I-I remember that happening kind of close to where I was standing…” The brunet murmured, furrowing his brow as he looked around the hall.

Byakuya straightened up at hearing this. He pointed at the brunet authoritatively.

“Hinata! You are to show me where this was.” As Hajime vaguely directed them to the right side of the room, the heir’s eyes trailed from the tables to the AC unit on the wall. Byakuya stormed up to it immediately, seeing as that was the most suspicious thing closest to them. “Hmph… Set to turn on at 11:30, the same time as the murder. There is no doubt this is related.”

Mukuro scrunched her nose as they returned to the front of the dining hall, for now.

“Maybe it’s related, but that can’t be all there is to it. You don’t cause a blackout every time you turn the AC on.”

Byakuya raised a pointer finger to his temple in thought again.

“No, but we can determine that a power surge is the most likely cause for the blackout. A simple enough method, if you know the threshold for the power usage… That is another thing we will have to determine – how the killer came across this knowledge, and how exactly the power usage was capped just before the blackout.”

Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly.

“W-Well… I’m pretty sure Monokuma would’ve been happy to let anyone in on that info. I mean, the only other possibility is that someone helping clean and prep the lodge learned the info firsthand, and, well… Did Yukizome-sensei say a blackout happened at all, during the day?”

Byakuya lowered his arms before staring at Hajime for several moments, gears clearly churning in his head. He then crossed his arms and clicked his tongue.

“She did not report such a thing. And I suppose it would be just like that troublesome bear to volunteer such dangerous information…” The heir huffed. “Let’s set aside the matter of ‘how’ the blackout happened, for now. We will simply have to investigate the building’s power usage in due time. The next questions in front of us are where, when, why, and how Owari was murdered.”

Hajime sweatdropped at the rapid-fire, yet understandable string of important questions. It was a big jump… So the brunet decided to bring up another question that bugged him.

“Not just those… I mean, returning to the blackout for just a sec. Komaeda said he caused it, right? Even if we can’t just accept his testimony as the unblemished truth, shouldn’t we be asking ourselves this: Are the killer and the person who triggered the blackout really the same person? Can we be sure of that?”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes thoughtfully at this question.

“A fair question. But it’s not something that we can answer just yet. Regardless of their intentions, the one who caused the blackout is a person of interest in our investigation. And furthermore, the killer somehow killed Owari during the blackout – it’s unthinkable that they wouldn’t have had some prior knowledge of it. The two broad possibilities are that the killer triggered the blackout, or there is an accomplice involved. We should proceed with the investigation, bearing both of these theories in mind.”

While the boys were talking, Mukuro had wandered over to some of the more eye-catching sights in the room – the bloodstains on the floor on the left side of the room; the way they were situated, they were close to being triangulated between Byakuya’s duralumin case, the middle-left table, and the front table. Though it was worthy to note they were closer to the tables than Byakuya’s case.

Mukuro was crouched down low, getting a better look at the stains when Hajime and Byakuya rejoined her.

“To think an attack occurred so close to me…” Byakuya’s lips curled in distaste as he clenched his fists. “How could I have missed this? The moment I put those goggles on, I should have seen everything as clear as day. The murderer stabbing Owari in the back, Owari fighting back, even the bloodstains should have tipped me off… Yet I saw none of this.”

Hajime scratched his head as he looked over at the nearby collapsed table, food sprawled out everywhere.

“Er… What **did** you see?” He found it hard to believe the heir had seen ‘nothing’. Granted, it was probably total chaos, but every little bit helped.

Byakuya’s frown deepened as he seemed to dredge up his memories from that murky time.

“I saw…” The heir trailed off, tapping his chin rhythmically for a few moments before seeming to come to a decision. “… No, never mind. There are still some things that I have to keep to myself until the time is right.”

Hajime groaned in frustration.

“Really?! We’re your ‘extensions’ or whatever, and you can’t tell us even a little bit of what it was like?”

The heir glared at Hajime hawkishly.

“Hinata, please understand! I **do** trust you, and I can say that I trust Ikusaba because of everything I witnessed in that darkness. But you must realize, every tidbit of information I leak to you can possibly get back to the culprit… If that happens, they can cover their tracks. We can’t allow them even the slightest advantage here.”

Hajime deflated at the heir’s logic. That was… That was fair. It didn’t mean he had to like it.

“Fine… you don’t have to get into the specifics for now.” The brunet sighed. “Just fill us in on this much, at least. Can you narrow down Owari’s time of death at all?”

Byakuya snorted derisively.

“If I was sitting on something **that** significant, Hinata, I would have a favorite suspect by now. No, the strangest thing is that during the whole time of the blackout, I didn’t catch a glimpse of Owari. Not that I remember.” The heir craned his head to the side in frustration. “Then again, when I saw the fire breaking out, my mind was on everyone’s safety. At the time, I assumed Owari was one of the few I wouldn’t have to keep an eye out for, that she was at the head of the pack in escaping to safety. But that still begs the question of **why** I didn’t see her body at all…”

“… Isn’t that because she was pushed under the table?” Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly at the reproving glare he received.

“We still don’t know when that happened.” Byakuya pointed out. “At the very least, I can assert this, Hinata: When I left the dining hall, I was **sure** no one was left behind. If the murder happened sometime in the middle of all that chaos, I never caught a glimpse of the act, the murderer, the body, **or** the body getting moved. Either there were extraordinary circumstances that allowed the murder to escape my gaze… or she was killed later, as we were all escaping.”

Hajime’s brow furrowed as he rubbed his chin.

“That... shouldn’t be possible. I mean, if you were the last one out of the dining hall, no one should have been able to slip by you. I remember it clearly: You, Yukizome-sensei, Tsumiki, and Komaeda were the last ones to make it outside.”

“… And that’s what makes this murder so vexing.” Byakuya sighed tiredly, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Mukuro abruptly stood up, and started carving a lazy half-circle around the general area.

“This is definitely where it happened.” Mukuro confidently asserted. She came to a stop near the flattened table, kicking a scrap of food away to show another small bloodstain underneath.

Hajime’s brow scrunched together in confusion.

“Are you sure? I mean, did you see Owari’s back? She was a mess. The blood around here seems so…” He gestured vaguely, trying to best describe it. “Limited.”

You’d think with her being stabbed multiple times, the stains would at least be a little bigger. Where else would it land, if not on the floor? Not even the tablecloth of the front table had been spared, as flecks and small splatters could be seen coating the side of it.

Mukuro shrugged lazily before she abruptly yanked Hajime towards her and stiffly situated him near the biggest bloodstain, even positioning his arms and legs. He spluttered at the randomness of it all.

“Wh-What are you…?” He yelped a little as Mukuro tapped his back a few times with the underside of her fist, pressing up close against him as she did so.

“If they were like this…” The soldier muttered to herself before shaking her head, eyeing another splatter close by on the floor. “… No, maybe half an inch back… to avoid getting stepped on… Yeah, it’d still be possible.”

As the soldier nodded slowly in satisfaction, releasing the brunet, he whirled around to face her, flabbergasted.

“The hell?!” Hajime spluttered. He didn’t like Togami volunteering him for things… Being forced into a demonstration made him even more uncomfortable. “And you didn’t answer my question! Why’s there so little blood around here if this is where Owari was killed?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say there’s **little** blood around here…” Byakuya muttered shrewdly, eyeing the floor. “There’s more under all this food. We’ll have to investigate this area thoroughly.”

Hajime gestured frantically and with a bit of exasperation.

“For her wounds it is! D-Don’t you think it’s weird?”

Mukuro shook her head.

“Nope. When you plan to kill someone by stabbing them, it’s best to have something draped over you to block the splatters. There was another tablecloth near Owari’s body, under the table. That thing definitely soaked up the blood.”

Byakuya nodded slowly in approval of that theory.

“True… that cloth might help explain some things.” The heir mused to himself. He tapped his temple, humming uncertainly. “Ikusaba, I want your professional opinion. Would you say Owari could have been murdered by ‘any’ of us? Or would she have been a more difficult kill compared to, say, Hinata?”

As the brunet shot the heir a withering glare at the example, Mukuro rubbed her chin as she reflected on it. She was silent for a few minutes.

“… Owari would have fought back.” Mukuro eventually settled on, brow furrowed. “If I had to individually kill all of you to get off this island, and I did it by targeting the strongest ones first, it’d probably be in this order: Nidai first, then Pekoyama, Tanaka, Kuzuryu, and Owari, followed by Sensei and the rest of you. While Kuzuryu isn’t physically imposing, he knows how to handle weapons, which is why I would handle him before Owari. Owari’s problem was that while she could be impressive in her physical abilities, she fought on raw instinct rather than any real disciplined form. So basically… she’s not weak. But she definitely wasn’t the strongest. Hypothetically, anyone could have caught her by surprise and killed her… but there couldn’t have been any hesitation. If there had been, Owari would have turned the tables, barring the possibility of her attacker being stronger than her.”

Byakuya’s scowl deepened.

“… **Anyone** could have killed her, you say?” He didn’t look happy about that.

Mukuro shrugged again.

“Once the killer wounded her once, and kept going, Owari would have got progressively weaker in her attempts at fighting back. I imagine once the killer landed a ‘lucky blow’ close to the heart, that was Game Over for Owari. I’m gonna look her over later and compare notes with Tsumiki, but based off what little I saw earlier, the killer clearly went to town on her. Then again… they would’ve been in pretty big trouble if they didn’t finish what they started, so… It’s natural they were in a frenzy, killing someone in the dark like that.”

Hajime frowned as Mukuro brought up that fact.

“… Hold on. The killer being in a frenzy, I get that. But how’d the killer find Owari in the dark and **not** tip her off that they were right behind her? I mean… Owari wasn’t subtle at all. If someone felt around or bumped into her, she would’ve said something. Yet all we heard was…”

_“Somebody turn the damn lights on!” Akane barked. “I can’t eat like this, you know?!”_

Hajime remembered that so well because Owari was so loud. If she had said anything else, it would’ve stuck in his mind. Yet, those were the final words he heard from her…

“Plus!” Hajime felt obligated to point out. “How’d the killer get Owari under that table? They shouldn’t have been able to see, but I guess the killer did a pretty good job without a light or night vision goggles!”

Hajime’s frustration was palpable, and who could blame him? The murder just seemed so… impossible. Yet it was carried out, even somehow managing to slip by the Togami heir’s gaze. Byakuya tapped his temple, deep in thought.

“… We have to keep investigating, Hinata. It’s all we can do.”

They had one chance to get it right… They couldn’t let it go to waste.

~*~

“I won’t believe… I won’t believe… I won’t believe…”

Fuyuhiko groaned as the portly chef anxiously fidgeted and wandered about the kitchen, checking on everything. Just his luck to get assigned **this** shmuck as his ‘investigation’ partner by that asshat, Togami. Next time he’d tell that fatass where he could stuff his ‘orders’.

“You done lyin’ to yourself yet?” The yakuza glared pointedly as the chef stiffened and froze in his pacing around the kitchen. Teruteru nervously turned towards the blond.

“I-I-I-I dunno what ya mean, good sir…! Nope! Nothin’ happened at all! I’m still cookin’ food for all those hungry mouths out there! No rest for the wicked!” The brunet combed his hair, grinning twitchily as his eyes darted from side-to-side.

Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes and looked off to the side in annoyance.

“Tch. Who’re you trying to convince? Yourself?” The yakuza crossed his arms. “Big Tits is dead. Just another body on a slab in the morgue. You wanna keep lying to yourself, go right ahead. It ain’t gonna bring her back. A murder’s finally happened – get over it.”

Teruteru whined pitifully before clenching his fists, his whole body quivering.

“Do ya hafta say it like that?! Owari-san was probably the greatest, you know? Parading her body around like that… Stuffing her face with my glorious cookin’ ‘cause she couldn’t help herself… Pickin’ fights with everybody…” Teruteru rubbed his chin uncertainly. “O-Okay, maybe that part of her personality coulda used some work… But that **body** ~!”

“Friggin’ pig…” Fuyuhiko grunted, turning his back on the chef and beginning to walk away.

“Wh-Where you goin’?!” Teruteru pointed accusingly at the yakuza. “Ain’t we supposedta be workin’ together?!”

The yakuza snorted derisively, turning back around and gesturing at the kitchen vaguely.

“Oh, yeah, real great **work**! Running away to your shitty dream world just ‘cause things got a little too **real** for you… You do what you want. I’m not gonna let you drag me down to an early grave because we couldn’t find the killer! Unlike you, I **have** to live. I’ve got reasons to live. If you fuck shit up for me, I’ll **never forgive you**. So just shut the hell up and stay outta my way.”

Teruteru recoiled at the aggressive tone and words.

“N-N-Now hold on a hot minute! I-I’ve got reasons to live, too!”

Fuyuhiko raised a fist in aggravation.

“Could’ve fooled me, ya bastard! Sitting around on your ass isn’t gonna find the truth. If you want to survive, you have to give it your **all**! Monokuma isn’t gonna execute me. Not happening. I know just the prick to grill to get to the bottom of this… So I’m getting some fucking **answers**. Just stay the hell outta my way!” As he yelled that, Fuyuhiko stomped away, hands shoved in his pockets.

Teruteru poked his index fingers together and his eyes darted about side-to-side before he chased after the yakuza, not wanting to be left alone. Plus, if the guy had a lead, it was better than nothing.

Fuyuhiko was scary as hell, but he had a point. He couldn’t die. Not yet.

~*~

“Oooh~! Why’d you stop in here, Peko-chan?” Ibuki chirped, poking her head into the bathroom, where the swordswoman was having a look around.

Peko frowned as she eyed the barren rack on the wall.

“Nidai mentioned how he couldn’t get in here, during the party. I thought it strange for someone to be in here that long.”

Ibuki rubbed the back of her head awkwardly.

“Maybe Hanamura-chan slipped someone laxatives… He’s just the kinda weirdo to do that.”

Peko shook her head, crossing her arms.

“No. At least if he did, there wasn’t any in the food I was given. And Kuzuryu didn’t mention anything odd about it, either.” The swordswoman tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “This seemed like an opportune place to conceal a weapon. Easy to access, and I doubt Sensei or the others spent much time in here while preparing the lodge. The missing cloth also concerns me…”

Ibuki tilted her head curiously at these tidbits.

“Oh? Oh? But isn’t that the place you hang towels?”

“It is.” Peko confirmed, making Ibuki’s eyes light up. But just as the musician opened her mouth… “… Which is why I thought it strange someone replaced it with a cloth entirely too long to drape here. I’m sure some of the others must have noticed it, as well. The only reason I peeked in here before the party was a cursory examination for traps or suspicious items… Clearly, I should have conducted a more thorough search.”

Ibuki rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

“Ibuki thinks Pekoyama-chan is being too rough on herself… Do ya really think something big like the murder weapon would’ve been in here?! That’s totally crazy…!”

Peko shrugged neutrally.

“Somehow, a knife eluded Togami’s body checks. And as Hinata said, he also gathered sharp instruments from the dining hall and kitchen. I am merely taking a guess where the killer could have hidden a knife that would slip by such tight security, but still be within the killer’s reach. If I am wrong, then so be it.”

Ibuki hummed noncommittally, tapping her chin rhythmically.

“Ibuki thinks Pekoyama-chan is so **serious** all the time… She should learn the simple joys of… of…” Ibuki’s eyes lit up again before she suddenly slipped past Peko in the narrow space of the bathroom and leaped down hard on the pedal of the metal trash can, making the top fly up from the pressure. “JUMPING ON PEDALS! WHOO-HOO~!”

Peko sighed a little at the impish behavior and closed her eyes to collect her thoughts. However, just as she was doing that, she caught a glimpse of something in the trash can from getting an inadvertent look when Ibuki swayed to the side. The swordswoman’s eyes snapped open again and she lightly brushed the musician aside, unintentionally making the lid snap back down.

“Oh? Oh? Does Pekoyama-chan wanna smash down on that pedal, too?!” Ibuki tilted her head to the side as the silver-haired woman reopened the trash can, examining the lid part.

“No. I needed to see what this was.” She pried off the duct tape that was left stuck to the underside of the lid. “… As I thought. The knife was likely in here, before the party. At the very least… something was here.”

The lid was just big enough to fit that knife, underneath. Barely. She had thought it strange there were two trash cans, and two different kinds at that, in a single small bathroom like this. Peko had chalked it up to Sensei trying to accommodate everyone over a whole night of partying while minimizing trips to empty the trash… But no, this may have been someone else’s handiwork.

Ibuki raised a finger pointedly.

“But! But, but, but! If the killer hid the knife in here, anybody could’ve grabbed it or seen it! How does this help narrow down who the killer is?!”

Pekoyama got back up from her slightly crouched position, once she found nothing else in the trash.

“It doesn’t. It would’ve been a risky move, but so long as they got into the lodge before Togami started the party, they could have retrieved the knife. … And the cloth, if that was their handiwork.” Peko crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes sharply. “Another thought to consider is that only a few people should have been allowed to plant the knife in here… Prior to the body checks, only Sensei, Nevermind, Ikusaba, and Hanamura should have been allowed inside the lodge. Hypothetically, it should be one of them.”

Ibuki tilted her head to the other side, hands clasped behind her back.

“Pekoyama-chan doesn’t think it’s one of them?”

The swordswoman closed her eyes solemnly.

“… Well, it could’ve been Ikusaba.” She conceded. Of the four, she was definitely the most suspicious. The problem remained that the soldier had gone outside for guard duty, and Peko hadn’t seen her try to slip back in before the blackout. She’d left the office open in order to survey the hallway, as well, so Peko knew this for a fact. Yet the possibility remained Ikusaba could have slipped by, through the darkness – the possibility was admittedly slim, however. Even if she had lost her sight, Peko still retained her sense of hearing, and she was trained to hear even the slightest hint of sound… there hadn’t been any, out in the hall. All she heard was the others panicking from further within the building… as well as Fuyuhiko checking on her. “But restricting ourselves to those four suspects is foolish. With enough fortune, anyone could have slipped in, unnoticed, and planted the knife… We need to come at this investigation from another angle. Mioda, you were in the dining hall. Did you hear anything that was amiss?”

Ibuki laughed cheerily, dancing around a little.

“Kyahaha! Ibuki heard many dark secrets~!” The musician proceeded to recite everything she heard from memory.

~*~

_A moment later… there was darkness. All the lights went out at once, and since the windows were covered up, it was a pitch blackness throughout the whole lodge._

_“Uwah! It’s a b-blackout!” Mahiru cried out._

_“Hey, I can’t see anything!” Kazuichi whined, stumbling around in the dark._

_“I-It’s pitch black! My future is pitch black!” Ibuki screamed super importantly._

_The sound of frantic footsteps and other screams echoed throughout the hall. Yukizome-sensei, Koizumi, Saionji, Tsumiki, Nidai, Nevermind, Kazuichi… they were totes yelling at the top of their lungs._

_“E-Everyone, calm down!” Yukizome-sensei’s voice rang out, clear and loud. “We have to stay calm at a time like this!”_

_Then a match was totally lit! Ibuki heard it with her super-amazing ears~_

_And then a firework totally zipped and zoomed across the room after it was ignited, and then it **smashed** into the wall, over by the covered windows, lighting up plenty of the room and making a bunch of silhouettes crystal clear from where Ibuki was, in the back. Well, that was an easy-peasy way to whip everyone into a frenzy, don’tcha think?_

_Ibuki didn’t know what was going on, but she was kinda getting pumped up from all the sudden exciting stuff, so she listened even harder with her super-amazing ears~_

_They were pretty much all screaming at that point… well, mostly everyone. Owari-chan had her mouth stuffed full o’ food, but she sounded kinda mad. Another match got lit. Another volley of fireworks launched across the room, exploding along the wall in a brilliant array of lights. Ibuki saw so many cool, awesome silhouettes~!_

_“Somebody turn the damn lights on!” Akane barked. “I can’t eat like this, you know?!”_

_“Is this **really** the time for that?!” Mahiru cried out in disbelief. Ibuki thought she might’ve heard some other sounds, too, but everybody was kinda panic-y at the time._

_“Wah! Don’t step on my feet!” Hiyoko whined gruffly, bumping into a table._

_“WAAAAAAH!” Mikan wailed, making a big crashing sound as she tumbled over a table in the dark. Kinda sounded like the table was all sorts of broken, too…_

_“SHIIIIIITTTTT!!!” Nekomaru bellowed._

_“What in the nine Hells is this madness?!” Gundham yelled out._

_“I **said** watch where you’re **going** …!” The dancer grunted with exerted effort. Kinda sounded like she might have been in the middle of standing back up. Was Saionji-chan goofing off like Tsumiki-chan?_

_Oh wells. There was lots more fun stuff going on. Yukizome-sensei was trying to call out for her, Nanami, and Hinata-chan, since they were the closest ones to her before the lights went out. Then you had Hinata-chan hyperventilating. Nanami-chan was mumbling something about a game and finding switches to light up areas. Tanaka-chan was telling his cute little hamsters to stay in his scarf. Kazuichi-chan was screaming at the top of his lungs about psychos needing to be banned from fireworks. Nevermind-chan was a little hyperventilate-y, too – she was stumbling around close to Ibuki’s table… or, well… the table at the front. Cloths were rustling somewhere kinda nearby, but Ibuki was focused on other noises. Nidai-chan was also screaming **suuuper** loud. Koizumi-chan was very grouchy. _

_“What the hell?! What’s going on here?!” Byakuya-chan sounded so cool and in charge~!_

_Uh-oh, Spaghettio’s~! Ibuki could hear a third match being lit!_

_“ **KOMAEDA**!” Togami-chan roared like a lion~! He totally charged like a wild elephant, too~! Koizumi-chan and Nidai-chan didn’t like getting bumped into, in Togami-chan’s rush to Komaeda-chan, wherever he was. _

_The third fireworks exploded while all of that was happening. Pretty sparkles~! Yaaay, more silhouettes~! The sound of scuffling could be heard from somewhere nearby, kinda sounded like Togami-chan and Komaeda-chan were wrestling~…_

_“You guys? Where are you? Wasn’t the blackout just in the kitchen…?” Teruteru whispered in distress from what must have been the entrance to the dining hall._

_“Perhaps the breaker overloaded…?” Sonia speculated, though she too sounded quite shaken._

_… And theeen the fire broke out, on the far end of the room. Ibuki was totes outta there~! Ibuki didn’t need a tan that bad, so Ibuki was like the first one outside. … You know, if you didn’t count Ikusaba-chan._

~*~

Peko dryly glanced at the musician as she concluded her rather... colorful reminiscence of the blackout.

“Did you have to put it like that…?” The swordswoman mumbled, adjusting her glasses slightly.

Ibuki dramatically pointed to the side with her index fingers.

“Never question Ibuki’s vitally important narration! It shall never steer you wrong~!”

“… Right.” Well, at least the musician had given her plenty to mull over with that… convoluted retelling of events.

~*~

“This is messed up…” Kazuichi massaged his forehead in aggravation after checking out the AC unit on the wall in the office. It had been set to go off at 11:30, strangely enough.

But that wasn’t important! At least, the mechanic didn’t think so. Not compared to everything else that happened that night…

“You have already said as much.” Gundham exasperatedly muttered, over by the cluttered desk. A couple of his hamsters were even crawling across it, sniffing for clues.

Kazuichi shook a fist at the breeder in annoyance.

“W-Well, it is! Why do we gotta drag this out if we know who the culprit is?! That freak confessed! Let’s just execute his ass and get on with our lives!”

The breeder buried the lower half of his face in his scarf as he narrowed his eyes and looked off to the side.

“Hmph. Your bloodlust has risen to astronomical levels, yet your Magic Essence still caps at a mere thirty! Do not presume too much of yourself, you have **much** to learn! For all we know, that foolish human is sacrificing himself when we have **no possible way** of finding the **real** killer. In that nigh well impenetrable fog, anyone could have stolen Owari’s life! We have yet to see what lies beyond the veil, and I fear that without the All-Seeing Eye, that will be all but impossible.” Tanaka gritted his teeth, clenching his fist in frustration. “Curses! Why did I not come more prepared? There must have been an omen I missed, during my daily rituals… Owari paid the price for my negligence.”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head chuckling nervously.

“You still say the weirdest stuff… But… uh… D-Don’t blame yourself too bad? I mean, unless that psycho talked to you, too, there’s no way you coulda known!” The mechanic paused for a moment, his mind catching up to his mouth. Then he recoiled at the slip of the tongue. “I wasn’t supposed to say that…!”

Too late, the damage was already done. Gundham fiercely whirled on the mechanic. He gripped his scarf and kept it below his mouth and chin.

“What did you say?! That foolish human told you of the cataclysm that was to come?” The breeder took a threatening step forward as Kazuichi took a step back, fearfully. “Kazuichi Souda, answer me…!”

Kazuichi spluttered.

“H-Hey…! I-It’s not **my** fault!” The mechanic defended himself. “L-Look, that freak said that even if we stopped him tonight, he wouldn’t rest until the killings started! S-So, I figured… If he was so determined, wh-why not let him make the first move, y’know? Get himself executed!”

Gundham huffed, crossing his arms and looking off to the side in exasperation.

“Fool… If you had known, it was your duty to inform us of his villainous intentions. The fact you kept silent means you are no better than he who concocted the scheme in the first place.”

“D-Don’t go comparing me to him!” Kazuichi griped. He reeled back at Tanaka’s hawkish glare.

“You intended to sacrifice one of us in order to remove a troublesome individual! How is that no different from committing the act of murder yourself?”

Kazuichi’s shoulders sagged in defeat at the accusation.

“D-D-Don’t go putting words in my mouth…! I… I didn’t… **want** anyone to die…” If it was any consolation, Kazuichi didn’t seem to believe in his own words. He was basically on autopilot.

But Gundham would set him straight, all the same.

“How else did you plan to rid ourselves of that villain? It clearly wasn’t on your mind, but someone would have to die for Komaeda to be executed. Making him break any other rule would be a nigh well impossible task, and Monokuma shall not execute us without reason. It would be unreasonable to assume the scoundrel would end his own life.”

Kazuichi tugged his beanie over his head anxiously.

“I… Look, I’m sorry! I figured if it wasn’t you, me, or Sonia-san, it wouldn’t matter!” He sighed miserably. “But I guess that’s just some dumb excuse, right? I mean, it’s like you said, I still treated it like it was no big deal. Owari didn’t do anything wrong. But as long as Komaeda gets out of our hair, it shouldn’t matter – that’s what I thought, like an idiot. I’m… I’m sorry. It’s… my fault this thing happened.”

A hand clasped Kazuichi’s shoulder firmly, making him jump a bit at the contact. He looked up into Tanaka’s compassionate eyes with confusion.

“Carve that into your memory so that you will never forget. Despite your sin, the brunt of this catastrophe does not lie on your shoulders. Komaeda himself has much to answer for, inspiring fear in my disciple. If he is indeed the one that severed the thread of Owari’s life, then he shall receive no mercy from me.”

Kazuichi blinked owlishly.

“Y-You don’t think… I did it…?”

The breeder scoffed.

“Did you forget? The two of us and the Dark Queen were at the same table on the right side of the dining hall, and we were not close to where the body was discovered. It is unthinkable that any of us could have done it… Especially the Dark Queen.”

Kazuichi nodded quickly, cracking a small, relieved smile.

“Y-Yeah! No way Sonia-san murdered Owari! It was totally that freak!” The relief emanating from him was palpable as he crossed his arms behind his head and chuckled to himself.

Gundham frowned, tapping his chin in thought. Something about that… stuck out at him. He tried thinking back to immediately before the blackout happened, but it was a bit troubling because the party had gone for at least an hour, and he was not always keeping an eye on their surroundings. Regardless, something was tugging at his memory…

They returned to the investigation of the office soon after that. Kazuichi determined that with the breaker high up on the wall, it’s unlikely any of them tripped it to cause the blackout. Then again, with Pekoyama standing guard in here, anything was possible. They also determined that since the duralumin case in the office was still locked, the killer probably didn’t access it to get the murder weapon.

… The last thing they found, though…

“What the heck is a firework doing in there?” The mechanic scratched his head in confusion. For indeed. In their search of the desk, they found a lone unused firework in an emptied desk drawer.

… At least that explained why the top of the desk looked so messy.

~*~

Nagito chuckled weakly as the orange-haired woman paced back and forth in front of the lodge, antsy. He himself was casually seated in the grass, leaning back against the building. She truly was a kindhearted woman that cared about her students. It was so beautiful~!

“I’m sure everyone is doing their part, Sensei! Togami-kun is the Ultimate Scion, so he knows exactly how to put everyone to good use! And Hinata-kun makes for a wonderful assistant~… Even I felt inspired by his bright, shining Hope!”

Chisa froze in her pacing, back turned to the luckster as her body trembled a little, hands clenched into fists at her side.

“Komaeda-kun, I’m sorry, but I need you to stay quiet right now… I don’t… I’m not ready to listen to you yet. You need… to stay quiet.” Her voice was gentle, but there was a steel edge beneath the surface. Her whole body was wound up and tense.

The luckster frowned as he mulled over her words. She even singled him out, hadn’t she? It’s not that she was unwilling to hear anyone out… Just him.

That hurt… a little.

“Sensei…” Nagito wet his lips, mulling over the best tactic to approach this. “If this is about my confession in there, I want you to know I meant every word of it! This well and truly is my fault.”

“ **Komaeda-kun**.”

The luckster tilted his head at the forceful tone, tinged with emotion. There was frustration and anger, yes – but there was also… anguish. A deep sorrow that cut through Nagito like a knife. It made him clam right up, despite feeling inclined to talk it out.

Her shoulders began to wrack with silent sobs. She was faced away from him, but Nagito could infer that there were tears spilling down her face. Tears that she didn’t want him to know about, if the way she kept her back towards him was any indication.

The luckster rubbed his chin thoughtfully at the development. It had to be Owari-san’s death that grieved her. Nothing else made sense to him. Though he wasn’t shedding tears of his own, he agreed the loss of the Ultimate Gymnast was tragic. Who knew she’d be the first to die? From what he knew of his classmates, it didn’t make sense. There wasn’t someone with a deep enough grudge to murder Owari **that** brutally. She could be overwhelming at times, and thus annoying to some of the more composed students, but she radiated and represented life itself. Was the kill done out of pity…? Did they not want someone as innocent as Owari to be dealing with this tragic game anymore than she already had?

Nagito hummed to himself quietly. He’d have to ponder this later. Sensei was the priority.

“Sensei, I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but Owari-san had to die.” He crossed his arms, staring at her back studiously.

Yukizome’s breath hitched at the sharp words. Her eyes widened into pinpricks, and her hands trembled a little at her side.

“Had… to die…?” She echoed, feeling she wasn’t processing those words correctly.

Nagito shrugged neutrally.

“If it wasn’t her, it would have been Tsumiki-san, or Kuzuryu-kun. Or Hinata-kun. Or even Ikusaba-san.” The luckster spread his arms out vaguely. “Sooner or later, a killing was going to happen. Monokuma truly has us at a disadvantage – we don’t know him, the person controlling him, or even if everybody in our group is a student of Hope’s Peak Academy! But he seems to know us. Eventually, he would’ve gotten his way.”

Nagito tilted his head curiously as he continued, unabashed.

“So isn’t it better to confront this grim destiny head-on, rather than run from it? Isn’t that what **Hope** is? Hope doesn’t cower and run! That only leads to Despair.” Nagito shook his head sadly. “Don’t look at this as some failure on your part. Your passionate, burning desire to protect everyone is admirable! But it was an impossible dream from the start. You can’t shield and save everyone… But you **can** watch over those who survive the trials ahead! They might need you more than ever, after they learn the truth.”

The orange-haired woman whirled on the luckster, tears pricking at her eyes as she appeared panicked and afraid.

“Y... You don’t **know** that…! If we all worked together, trusted each other, no one had to die!!! You never had to cook up a murder scheme in the first place! By doing that, you gave up! That’s not ‘hope’…!”

Nagito looked down at his hand with a thoughtful frown.

“Well, I suppose we can agree to disagree on that. I mean… Moving on with life after a funeral, is that not Hope…? I think it’s perfectly natural to accept death as every human’s fate. Sometimes, it comes too soon. Sometimes, it’s unfair a person died in a particularly brutal way… But in death, they can still be a stepping stone to Hope for those they left behind~! If we just approach this with the right attitude, I **know** we’ll be better off than we were before!”

Chisa clutched at both sides of her head, fearful eyes now averted to the ground.

“That’s… That’s not… Owari **didn’t have to die**! You don’t ‘help’ people by giving them someone to mourn over… Komaeda-kun, that way of thinking is **wrong**! You’re… you’re sick…” She whispered, horrified. The orange-haired woman was backing away slowly.

Nagito chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with a closed-eyed grin.

“Don’t worry, you’re not the first to think that way about me. And who knows? Maybe you guys are right, and I’m the crazy one. But you know… Dwelling on the negatives is such a waste~… If you walk on eggshells around me, the others aren’t going to know how to deal with me, either. As our teacher, you should set the example! A murder’s happened, it wouldn’t be surprising if I’m the next corpse. Of course, we don’t want another body… But it’s kind of inevitable, now. By the end of tonight, the killer’s going to be dead, too. That, or everyone besides the killer… But I have faith in you guys~!” The luckster spread his arms out again, a manic look entering his eyes. “I wonder how brightly your Hopes will shine. Will they be so dazzling that they eclipse Monokuma? Will it be enough to smother all Despair on Jabberwock Island? I’m positively giddy with anticipation~! I especially look forward to **you** , Sensei. Everyone looks up to you, they listen to your every word with bated breath. I… I want you to be the most beautiful beacon of them all… Sensei. You’ll be **perfect** , I know it!”

Chisa wasn’t sure why… But she ran. She turned and fled, unable to listen to the luckster anymore. It was probably a combination of pressures wearing down on her, but she kept running and never looked back.

And Nagito watched her go with nothing but admiration reflected in his eyes and the wide grin sported on his face.

“Hey, bastard.”

Nagito hummed thoughtfully at being addressed in such a vulgar manner, and craned his head to see Fuyuhiko standing in the doorway, at the top of the steps to the lodge.

“Kuzuryu-kun…?” The luckster murmured.

“We need to talk. Now.” The yakuza growled lowly, eyes hardening as he glared daggers at the white-haired boy.

Nagito’s grin widened.

~*~

Sonia sighed tiredly as she placed the knife back up on the wall, after examining it. She feared that would be the case. They were exactly the same style of knife that was buried in Owari’s back, and the knife that was confiscated from Komaeda… So they came from Hotel Mirai’s kitchen, and not the one from the lodge.

It was a minor piece of information… But it did set her mind at ease. Because that meant Togami-kun and Hinata-kun hadn’t been lying about collecting the dangerous items in that duralumin case. That meant she could… trust them. She could.

If she wasn’t able to do that, she might’ve gone crazy. Then again… maybe she already was, after everything Komaeda-kun had said to her. Maybe that’s why her heart and will had… in the end… crumbled. Why she had…

Her thoughts were cut off by her investigation partner.

“Tch. You’re all so stupid… Dragging this out is such a waste of time.” The dancer pouted moodily.

“Y… You should not say such things, Saionji-san. Remember what Hinata-kun said!” Sonia tried with all her might to keep the exhaustion out of her voice.

She knew she had failed miserably when Hiyoko rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“I know, I know!” The dancer groused. “It’s not gonna change our verdicts! This is all that shit’s fault… **You** agree with me, right? You heard him say it, himself!”

As her fellow blonde stomped impatiently, Sonia sagged her shoulders, unable to hold it in anymore. This whole ordeal was choking her with stress and worry. And Saionji wasn’t helping.

“I-I know… a-all too well what Komaeda-kun… said…” Sonia flinched, fingers nervously fidgeting together. Her eyes then adopted a faraway look, recalling how much simpler things had been earlier in the day…

Then Komaeda-kun ruined it. It truly was his fault.

Hiyoko nodded stiffly, appearing oblivious to the princess’s inner conflict.

“There’s nothing more to **find**.” Saionji grumbled. “Only a shit like him would want to kill an idiot like Owari… He set up everything. He deserves to be executed for it.”

Sonia shivered. Set everything up? The dancer had no idea.

“I… I will not argue with you…” Sonia murmured, looking pale. Monokuma’s explanation of the trial echoing in her mind.

Why…? Why did things have to turn out like this…? It’s not fair to hide the rules like that…

Hiyoko tilted her head tauntingly at the princess, hands clenching into fists.

“Why’re you so quiet, huh? If you really hate the guy as much as I do, you gotta speak up! What would your people say if they saw you whimpering ‘cause of a freak like him? Show some spine!”

“ **I do not want to talk about this anymore** , **good day**!” Sonia’s booming voice oozed authority, and the dancer clammed right up.

Hiyoko, with narrowed eyes, watched the princess anxiously depart, soon after that.

~*~

Chiaki tilted her head as she slid the dojo’s door open. It was different in here at night. The moonlight gave the whole place a tranquil, melancholic vibe. Maybe that was why he had chosen this place to grieve. Or maybe it was the few precious memories he had here.

Either way, Chiaki shuffled into the dojo and approached the hulking man who was kneeling on the floor in the middle of the main hall. She didn’t initiate the conversation, she just stood there patiently as the Ultimate Team Manager sat there, clutching his knees tensely. For several moments, nothing was said. But then…

“I promised I’d take care of her…” Nekomaru muttered softly, eyes trained on the floor but not actually focusing on anything at all. “It wasn’t just an idle one, either. I swore I’d protect us both if we were in danger… Some manager I turned out to be. Can’t even save one impulsive woman.”

“… It’s not your fault, Nidai-kun.” Came Chiaki’s natural and earnest response. “We were all in the same situation. Any of us could have been killed… I think.”

The fabric of his pants balled into his fists as Nidai gritted his teeth in shame.

“But unlike most of you guys, **I could have done something** …! I **should** have done something! If I’d just stayed by her side… Hell, maybe if I’d just listened hard enough, maybe… maybe I could have done my **job** …”

Chiaki ambled over and placed a hand on the team manager’s shoulder consolingly.

“Retries only happen in RPG’s, Nidai-kun… We haven’t found a way to make Save points in the real world yet. What’s important now is working together to find the truth. We’ll definitely have time to grieve, later. For right now, everybody needs us.”

Nekomaru chuckled bitterly, squeezing his eyes shut shamefully.

“You’d make a wonderful Coach, Nanami-san… Better than me.” His shoulders shook slightly as he barked out a short, sorrowful laugh. “Hah! Maybe that’s why Owari didn’t listen to me. She… She already knew I was pretty much a fake.”

Chiaki shook her head sternly.

“Owari-san was headstrong, Nidai-kun… You’re being too harsh on yourself.” She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “When your teams lost in the past, did they give up? Did you let them give up?”

Nekomaru slowly opened his eyes and gazed down at the floor solemnly. He didn’t answer for several moments.

“… No. I’d have kicked their butts if they did that. Losses… aren’t the end. Losses teach you valuable lessons. They’re… they’re necessary for motivating athletes to be better.”

“You see?” Chiaki tilted her head cutely, gripping the straps of her backpack.

Nekomaru’s frown became a bit wobbly before he belted out a hearty laugh, unable to contain it any longer.

“Okay, okay! I’ve been served. Maybe the Ultimate title went to my head a bit… I got cocky.” Nekomaru stood up on one leg slowly. “I won’t… run away. I’ll face Owari’s death head-on! And I’ll catch the one who killed her!”

The manager got back up on both feet and cracked his knuckles in anticipation. Chiaki smiled kindly, a hand over her heart.

“I’m glad. We need you, Nidai-kun. More than you can ever know.”

Nekomaru laughed, rubbing the back of his head bashfully.

“Glory lies beyond the horizon! It’s not something you ever stop chasing. I… I want all of you to see that. To make up for my failure to protect Owari.” His posture relaxed and his eyes softened as he looked to the Ultimate Gamer. “Really, Nanami-san… Thanks. I won’t let this stop me.”

Chiaki beamed in relief.

~*~

Hajime ran a hand through his hair as he approached Mikan and Mahiru. They’d been assisting the investigation in their own ways, but had needed more time to conduct their work. Mikan had especially been stalled by Mukuro chipping in, but the two of them had seemed to reach a satisfactory agreement on the autopsy, at last.

“Um… If you’d like, I can tell you a little bit of what I want to say…” Mikan nervously mumbled, fingers poking together.

“Did you find anything out?” Hajime asked.

“Um, I tried, within reason, to perform an autopsy on Owari’s body… A-And I discovered… there were multiple stab wounds all along Owari’s back… D-Deep wounds… Deep enough to reach her lungs and internal organs… It can be assumed that… the knife that was left buried in her back… was the instrument that carried out the murder. A-All the measurements line up perfectly.” Mikan stared down at the floor, chewing on her lower lip. “B-But that’s not all… While those were the only injuries Owari received, sh-she was found clutching… a small, torn strip of white cloth in her left hand… P-Part of it was lodged under her fingernail, s-so it’s reasonable to assume Owari f-fought back against her attacker…”

Hajime’s frown deepened at this new piece of information.

“But wait… There was a bloodied tablecloth next to Owari. If we assume the killer had that on them, wouldn’t that mean she could’ve torn off a scrap of that cloth…?”

Mikan poked her index fingers together anxiously.

“Th-That’s what Ikusaba-san immediately assumed, too. But she examined the cloth, and it w-wasn’t torn… N-Neither was the table cloth o-obscuring Owari’s body.”

Hajime’s brow furrowed. If it wasn’t a shredded piece of table cloth… What was it?

“… Tsumiki, a-are you okay?” The brunet abruptly asked as his eyes panned down to her leg, where there was a splotch of blood he hadn’t previously noticed before. It was more on the lower, inside of her leg, toward the shin, but the blood was indeed there.

Mikan followed his gaze down and let out a light scream before recovering herself.

“O-O-Oh… Y-You noticed it, too… Ehehe…” The nurse let out a nervous chuckle, poking her fingers together more anxiously.

“Anyone would notice that!” Hajime exclaimed, a little flabbergasted. “Did you get cut on something?”

Mikan rapidly shook her head, hands clasped together as she squeezed her eyes shut tight.

“N-N-N-No…! Th-The blood isn’t mine! I… I mean…” The nervous wreck of a girl clutched both sides of her head in distress. “Wh-Wh-When I fell during the b-blackout! I-I-I think that’s wh-when it got on me! I-I noticed it after w-we made it outside.”

Hajime’s brow furrowed even more in confusion.

“When you fell… over…?” He trailed off as he vaguely remembered something like that happening. He scratched his cheek sheepishly. “O-Oh… **That** … That sounded pretty big and like it hurt. A-Are you sure you’re okay?”

Mikan blinked in surprise at the brunet’s continued concern.

“Y-Yes… I-I think I made that table collapse…” She nervously laughed as he gazed at the broken furniture. “I-I-I’m sorry…! I-I s-slipped on something!”

“Slipped on something…?” Hajime echoed, baffled. “The carpet?”

Mikan shook her head again rapidly.

“I-It felt like a cloth under my foot… I-I wasn’t expecting th-that, and I… s-slipped…” The poor girl clutched both sides of her head again. “M-My back got all covered in food… Y-Yukizome-sense was nice and l-let me go change into a new change of clothes… B-But then w-we found… Owari…”

Hajime couldn’t get much new information from the nurse after that, so after consoling her to the best of his abilities, he moved onto Mahiru, who was looking impatiently at him.

“So, what’d you find, Koizumi?” The brunet asked curiously as she pulled out a few photos, and then her hand-drawn map.

“Just as Togami told me, using the photos I took before the blackout, I tried to pinpoint where everyone was standing. When I did, this diagram was the result.” She then referenced the hand-drawn illustration.

“So this is everyone’s standing position before the blackout… Everyone’s pretty much in the dining hall.” Hajime mused.

Starting from the back of the dining hall, no one was at those two rear tables. There were just lamps on them. Then, on the far left you had Byakuya and his duralumin case along the left wall. Mahiru and Nekomaru were near him, behind the left middle table; Mikan was in front of that table, which came as no surprise since she had accidentally made that table collapse. Then, at the right middle table, you had Sonia on the left side, in the center of the tables, Hiyoko close by her in the center, but dining at the front table. Kazuichi was behind the right middle table, and Gundham was on the right side of that table. Nagito was standing along the right wall, close to the AC unit. Hajime was also near that table with Sonia, Kazuichi, and Gundham; near Hajime were Chisa and Chiaki – the teacher had been about ready to go and relieve Mukuro of guard duty, outside. Lastly, at the front table, in addition to Hiyoko, there was Akane and Ibuki; Akane was to the left of that table, and Ibuki closer to very front of the dining hall.

Outside the dining hall, Teruteru was marked to have been in the kitchen – with a question mark, due to no one being able to verify it. Peko and Fuyuhiko were in the office. And Mukuro was marked as outside.

“I’ve made this diagram from analyzing my photos, so I’m pretty sure it’s accurate.” The redhead explained.

_‘So Owari was standing next to the table she was found under…’_ Hajime thought to himself. _‘How the hell did Nagito get over there, if he killed her? He was on the right side of the room!’_

“Huh…” Hajime muttered, rubbing his chin.

“Did you find something?” Mahiru asked curiously, looking at the sketch, herself.

The brunet shook his head.

“I… It’s not clear to me yet, but…” He trailed off, not sure how to word his thoughts.

“It’s fine.” Mahiru frowned, hands clasped behind her back nervously. “I… didn’t think this thing would be much of a clue, either. It’s probably just a waste of labor…”

Hajime shook his head firmly, surprising the photographer.

“No, it wasn’t a waste at all.” At her perplexed look, he explained as best as he could. “Koizumi, I **know** there’s a clue in here somewhere. It’s really important we know where everybody was, during the blackout. I don’t know why just yet, but that’s fine. We’ll uncover it together.”

Mahiru gripped her camera bag strap, looking down uncertainly.

“I dunno… It’s just… I can’t see how Komaeda could’ve done it, from how he was positioned. If he was launching fireworks on the right side of the room, how could he have stabbed Owari?”

“… That just means we have to look to other suspects.” Hajime pointed out. “It’s possible someone asked Komaeda to help them commit murder. We don’t know if an accomplice would get the same perks as the Blackened, right?”

“Th… That’s crazy…” Mahiru muttered, looking off to the side anxiously. Hajime followed her gaze and saw…

_‘Tsumiki…?’_ He chalked it up to the photographer being concerned for the nurse, but…

But she had been standing close to Owari, during the blackout…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "In the repeating world, if I reach out my hand a number of times  
> Will my fleeting teardrops melt your black heart?
> 
> If these budding feelings echo in my heart  
> Then I'm sure I'll be able to protect you at your side with no change.
> 
> If I pick up the fallen hope and connect it to tomorrow,  
> I can even untangle a knotted, twisted-up wish.
> 
> I held the light above me and erased my doubts.  
> What I wanted in the future  
> Was to hold you in the night as you cried and screamed your despair.
> 
> My feet I moved in are  
> Softly healed by my faraway ideals.  
> I grip tightly onto these certain bonds and move ahead, no matter where,  
> The miracle that cut through the impurity on my back.
> 
> If I touch these feelings that were created, then more than anything  
> It starts to mist up the warm reality.
> 
> Even if you keep asking the confused world,  
> You already knew it wouldn't give an answer, didn't you?
> 
> The wish that I made that dripped down as I cried will never show any wavering.  
> It just softly gives me endless pain.
> 
> You learned sadness and happiness,  
> But weakness changed you.  
> You threw off the time that stopped and destroyed everything.
> 
> You entrusted the words that should not have been able to reach to me.  
> What do those eyes I see feel that makes  
> Them distance themselves.  
> It's as if you're hiding your heart.
> 
> If you've taught me  
> The reason I am here,  
> I can stay strong without change, forever.
> 
> I held the light above me and erased my doubts.  
> What I wanted in the future  
> Was to hold you in the night as you cried and screamed your despair.
> 
> My feet I moved in are  
> Softly healed by my faraway ideals.  
> I grip tightly onto these certain bonds and move ahead, no matter where,
> 
> Wavering opens my eyes.  
> I'll shake it all off and reach out my hand,  
> The miracle that cut through the impurity on my back."
> 
> ... Sorry, I still got Oath Sign stuck in my head. Fate Zero's openings, both of them, are pretty Danganronpa-esque. I like to think they could be the theme music for AIF, too. 
> 
> Are we having fun yet? :3 I certainly did, writing many parts of this jumbo chapter. But all good things come to an end...
> 
> And somebody's gonna diiie next week~ IIIT'S PUNISHMENT TIIIIME~~~
> 
> Also~ For your viewing pleasure, here's my poorly edited map of the lodge. XD It'll at least help you guys understand wheeere everyone was~ :3
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/tobi888/art/Mahiru-s-map-Another-IF-Goodbye-Despair-861994315?ga_submit_new=10%3A1606101362&ga_type=edit&ga_changes=1


	10. Chapter 1, Part 7: Destination Despair

“… Huh?” Kazuichi held a hand over his mouth as he looked up at the specially carved mountain before them. “Hey, what the heck is that mountain?! Wh-When did that get here?!”

Hajime shot the mechanic a dry look.

“Well, the mountain’s been there for a while… The Monokuma heads at the peaks, though? That’s a new addition. How’d they even make a mountain shaped like Monokuma?”

Peko crossed her arms, frowning.

“That story… might be true after all.” The swordswoman mused. “There might be an **enormous organization** involved in all this.”

“You mean what Togami was telling us about?” Hajime asked, to which he received a nod from the swordswoman.

“I… I cannot believe an organization would go to such strange extremes…” Sonia massaged her arm in worry.

Nekomaru clenched a fist in frustration, clenching his eyes shut.

“I know if Owari was still alive… she’d probably want to climb around on those heads, just because she could.”

Ibuki foamed at the mouth a little.

“Owari, Owari, Owari…”

Chiaki tilted her head.

“Hmm… Where are Togami-kun and Sensei? They’re sure taking a while.”

Mikan poked her fingers together nervously.

“N-Now that you mention it… they don’t appear to be here yet…”

Hiyoko threw her hands in the air, carefree.

“Ah, I know! They probably ran away!”

Monokuma appeared, rubbing the back of his head bashfully.

“Aw, hell naw! There’s no way I’d let them escape, you know! Look! I dragged this one back over here!” Eccentrically, the bear was tugging at Togami’s pant leg, like leading a wayward child.

Byakuya deadpanned down at Monokuma.

“Unhand me. I was already on my way when you ‘tagged along’…” He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

“Now, now, Togami~… We’ve already played your tsundere route! You’re supposed to be the Cinnabun route!”

The bear was summarily ignored. Mahiru placed her hands on her hips in exasperation.

“Hey, Togami! Where did you go off to? I was looking around for you, since you asked for that diagram in the first place, but you were gone from the old building!”

The heir crossed his arms, staring at the photographer sternly.

“I had to check on everyone, to make sure the investigation was running smoothly. But something urgent came up, so I was indisposed until now.” He extended his hand authoritatively. “Give it here. Hinata, come this way. Fill me in on what Tsumiki and Ikusaba found.”

Mahiru huffed impatiently at being dismissed so easily, but let the brunet wander a small distance away with Togami to brief him on the investigation. Teruteru combed his hair suavely.

“Guess we’re just waitin’ on Sensei, hmm? Wonder what she’s cookin’ up…”

Fuyuhiko crossed his arms, looking off to the side in annoyance.

“That bastard Komaeda made her run off… Said some things that were uncalled for.”

Mahiru rounded on the luckster, who held up his hands peacefully. Mukuro got between the photographer and luckster, defensively.

“N-Now, now, Kuzuryu! Don’t give people the wrong impression. Sensei was a bit emotional from Owari’s death, which was what really drove her off. I was… trying to give her a pep talk, which didn’t exactly go as planned… It’s not like I said anything that was untrue!” Nagito explained… not so helpfully.

“Whether they were true or not, they can still be insensitive!” Mahiru pointed towards the luckster furiously. “You really need to watch what you say! Sensei isn’t the only one you’ve said some ‘things’ to…”

“You watch what **you** say.” Mukuro’s eyes hardened at the photographer. “Komaeda-kun hasn’t done anything wrong!”

“He set off those damn fireworks!” Kazuichi shouted, shaking a fist in aggravation.

“That hasn’t been **proven** …” Mukuro stubbornly insisted. Peko narrowed her eyes at the soldier.

“I wouldn’t say that… While we were outside, waiting to hear about Owari, I noticed some of his fingers looked slightly singed… Those marks were most definitely recent.”

Mukuro turned on the swordswoman sharply, but Nagito cut her off before she could speak.

“Ahaha… Your observational skills are splendid, Pekoyama! You’re right… I was in a hurry to get the third fireworks going because Togami-kun was onto me, and I got careless. Just my luck.”

“Komaeda-kun…!” Mukuro craned her head to look back at the luckster in mild frustration. Nagito spread his arms out amicably.

“There’s no need for me to be shy, Ikusaba! Every one of my actions is going to be brought to light. Just sit back and let things take their course, okay? I promise it’ll be over soon.”

Mukuro fully turned to the luckster distressfully.

“ **Komaeda-kun** …! Th-There’s no way I can just accept this…!”

Gundham buried the lower half of his face in his scarf as he looked off to the side in mild annoyance.

“Where is that woman? If the bell of catastrophe rings, it is nature’s providence to answer it. She is not a slow-witted woman… Why does she drag her feet?”

As if answering a summons, Chisa appeared, sheepishly running a hand through her hair and cracking a small, broken smile.

“Sorry, you guys… I’m right here. Wouldn’t let you start without me.”

Sonia’s brow knitted together in concern, not being the only one to notice the obvious swollen and puffy eyes their teacher had.

“A-Are you sure you’re alright…? We could…” She trailed off uncertainly, knowing Monokuma wasn’t likely to make an exception to this Class Trial.

Chisa just offered a pleasant beam that would melt your heart. She was obviously mustering up every ounce of strength to remain standing, but still, here she was. She was here… like she promised. Whenever they needed her… she would be there.

Monokuma showed off his devious side as he raised a paw dramatically.

“All right, now that everyone’s all together… Let’s take the **secret entrance** to the trial field~!”

“P-Please, wait a second!” Monomi appeared, raising both her paws.

Monokuma tilted his head cutely.

“My, my, Monomi… Just what are you doing here? Nobody asked for you.”

“I-I… I…!” Monomi trembled with determination.

“Hmm…? Do you actually wanna join in? Do you want to taste how powerless you are at the class trial? You’re an even bigger masochist than I thought~! Oh well! I’m a niisan who dotes on his imouto. I shall allow your special participation!” Monokuma belted out a laugh. “I’ll go on ahead and wait for you guys, so hurry over!”

Monokuma then took his leave. Teruteru poked his fingers together anxiously.

“He told us to come, but… How do we get there? I… don’t see any doors… or vehicles…”

“He mentioned something… about a secret entrance, was it…?” Mahiru mused, tapping her cheek.

As they pondered this, the second Monokuma head from the left on the mountain roared, opening its gaping mouth wide, and releasing an escalator for them to use.

“S-Something came out?!” Mikan exclaimed in shock, looking quite pale.

“C-Could it be… Is he telling us to enter it?” Peko asked warily, glaring at the construct.

Gundham held his hamsters, looking terrified.

“S-Such a suspicious aura…! Even **Crimson Steel Elephant** Maga-Z is trembling with fear!”

“Uwaaah! That’s totally suspicious!” Hiyoko cried out.

Kazuichi massaged his forehead in aggravation.

“F-Forgive me…! Seriously… Just forgive me already…!” He whined pitifully.

Teruteru combed his hair suavely.

“Hey, why don’t we just stop here? I mean… none of this is real, anyway. Like… not even remotely… There’s no way! There’s no way we’ll find the killer~!”

“C-Complaining won’t get us anywhere!” Mahiru pointed out in aggravation. “If you’re really a man, then man up for god’s sake! We’ve come this far… We have no choice but to keep moving forward…”

Hajime nodded sadly.

“You’re right, there’s nowhere for us to run… We need to do it.”

Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully.

“If that’s everyone’s decision… I’ll just follow you guys. If this were a video game, it’d have a very high difficulty level… Let’s do our best to clear the game.” She spoke with determination and conviction.

Soon after, they each boarded the escalator and were whisked into the Monokuma head, where they found themselves in an elevator. Once they were all inside, the escalator was sucked back in, and then the elevator began making its descent.

“This… is an elevator!” Nekomaru called it out for what it was. There was a little space with the seventeen of them in there... But it was kind of a tight fit. “I see…! This entire rock is an elevator!”

“Once again… Monokuma is doing as he pleases…” Chiaki murmured under her breath.

“However, if he’s gone this far and made something like this… I don’t think he’s playing around.” Peko mused.

“Even so, we’re goin’ pretty deep!” Ibuki couldn’t help noticing as the elevator just kept traveling downward at a decent clip.

“You’re right…” Hajime muttered. He heard an unnerving chattering sound in his head. He soon realized it was the sound of his own teeth. All he could do was purse his lips tightly so no one else could hear it.

After some time passed, the elevator reached its destination with a chime, and the doors slowly opened. As they spilled out of the elevator, they drank in their surroundings – the room was set up with stadium seating all around the main area. The floor was checkered black and white, and had tracks of red carpet leading up to eighteen witness stands all arrayed in a circle, with one stand already occupied with a portrait of Owari’s face towering over it. Her face had colorful turkey legs marking an X on it.

The other seventeen witness stands… were clearly for them.

Other features of the room included a throne, which likely belonged to Monokuma. And a giant TV screen was arranged over the entrance to the courtroom.

“Okayyy~! Welcome!” Monokuma greeted them, making his dashing appearance. “This is the **Class Trial Field** ~! How do you like it? It’s a special place that will decide your fates!”

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched at his side in outrage.

“Tch… What the hell is he thinking…?! Locking us in a shitty-looking place like this! Are you fuckin’ crazy?! Don’t mess with me, asshole!” The yakuza growled lowly.

Monokuma giggled, covering up his mouth.

“Upupu~… Complain all you like, I’m used to it by now. C’mon, you’re wasting your time and energy. Hurry up and take your seats where your names are written!”

As instructed, they all took their places. They knew there was no use resisting. Hajime looked around the circle and took note of where everybody was. Starting from his right, and going all the way around the circle until he got back to his left side, he noticed they were arranged: Mahiru, Kazuichi, Peko, Chisa, Teruteru, Sonia, Nekomaru, Chiaki, Byakuya, Mikan, Nagito, Ibuki, Fuyuhiko, Mukuro, Akane’s portrait, Gundham, and Hiyoko.

_‘The **Ultimate Gymnast** , Akane Owari… She was brash, loud, and could be really stubborn…’ _Hajime thought to himself grimly. _‘But… She also just wanted to have a good time and not think about the complicated stuff. She was precious to Nidai, and she could bring a smile to your face if you just gave her a chance. A woman like her… got murdered. The person who did it… is one of us? I can’t believe it… There’s no way I can believe it… But… if it’s really true… We need to find out, by any means possible. Because… that’s our only option. There is no way for us to survive unless we sacrifice the **killer** …’_

And so… this life-threatening trial billowing with **Hope** and **Despair** … has begun.

Monokuma patted his belly contently as he sat on his throne.

“As is tradition in my house~… During the Class Trial, you will present arguments for who the killer is, and vote for whodunit. If you vote correctly, then only the Blackened will be punished. But if you pick the wrong person… Then I’ll punish everyone **besides** the culprit, and that person will earn the right to leave this island!”

“S-Such a cruel rule…!” Monomi shook in outrage from where she was dangling, hogtied by a rope.

Togami glared at the monochrome bear shrewdly.

“For final confirmation… There **is** a killer among us?”

Monokuma nodded sagely.

“Most definitely~… There’s no doubt the Blackened is lurking among you. Such a sad state of affairs, isn’t it~? By the way, the Class Trial is going to be 100% fair, so there’s no need to worry. I’m the type who hates favoritism and prejudice… Well, not as much as I hate Monomi, of course.” The bear giggled, paws over his mouth.

“You hate me that much?!” Monomi exclaimed in shock.

“Nooow~! Let’s begin!” Monokuma cheered, pumping one fist in the air.

Mikan stared down at the floor, trembling nervously.

“Y-You say that… But what are we supposed to do?”

Kazuichi pointed at the luckster in outrage.

“We already know who the culprit is! The guy confessed! Can’t we just skip to voting time?!”

“… We need to talk this through. I… really don’t wanna gamble with lives.” Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly.

Fuyuhiko sneered.

“Didn’t that Owari chick get killed in the dining hall, huh? Then everyone there’s a fuckin’ suspect.”

Mahiru sighed exasperatedly.

“Yeah, yeah. What you’re really trying to say is that you’re not the killer, right?”

Fuyuhiko nodded in confirmation, bowing his head and placing one hand on his hip.

“No shit. You’re the ones that decided to start killin’ each other. This has nothin’ to do with me or Pekoyama.”

“What’s **that** mean?” Mahiru demanded.

“That remains to be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.” Byakuya raised a finger to his temple shrewdly. “But let’s start tackling this piece by piece, rather than throw around accusations. The most pressing issues to address first are this: who caused the blackout, and how did they do it?”

Nagito waved his hand casually, giving an unabashed closed-eyed grin.

“I’d be more than happy to tell you everything! There wasn’t much to it, really!”

Chisa pleasantly beamed back at him, though her tone came on a bit strong.

“Komaeda-kun… just stay quiet until we ask you something, okay?” Her smile twitched the tiniest amount when Nagito zipped his mouth shut.

Teruteru rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Why’s the blackout such a huge deal? Couldn’t someone have just used the breaker?”

Peko crossed her arms, frowning.

“No. The breaker is high up on the wall, and Kuzuryu and I were both in the office at the time. There’s no way anyone meddled with it.”

Mukuro narrowed her eyes at the swordswoman.

“If you and Kuzuryu were co-conspirators, it would have been quite possible.”

“What’d you say, bitch?!” Fuyuhiko clenched his fist and shouted in outrage. “There’s no fucking way we messed with that breaker…!”

Peko sighed airily.

“Would an accomplice even have a reason to help the killer? Would they be able to ‘graduate’, too?” Her glare turned fiercely on the robot bear. “Well, Monokuma?”

Monokuma tilted his head cutely, raising a paw to his mouth.

“Well… I’d hate to step on any toes… But since I never talked about ‘accomplices’ in the school’s trips rules… Hmm… Nah~! We’re too early in the game for me to be cooking up zesty motives like that! We don’t even have someone in gaudy Gothic Lolita to pull off an Invincible Hammer move! That rings an entirely different school bell~! The only one making it off this island is the **Blackened**. No free rides for moochers.”

Peko turned back to the soldier sternly, arching an eyebrow.

“You see?”

Mukuro’s eyes remained narrowed in suspicion.

“The accomplice wouldn’t have known that beforehand.” She looked around when no one spoke up to confess to being an accomplice. “There **could** still be an accomplice. If they had a motive beyond escaping…”

Nidai placed his hands on his hips, frowning.

“Hold on… If there was an accomplice, they’d die, too, if they helped the killer escape. Who would put down their life like that? What reason could they have for helping the killer?”

Mukuro spread her arms vaguely.

“You’d be surprised the lengths some people will go to. Never underestimate someone’s loyalty.”

A grim silence fell over the group as Mukuro brought that up. They couldn’t exactly deny the possibility, since they knew next to nothing about each other… But still, it seemed so… out there. Who could be that selfless?

Wrapped up in their own thoughts, people missed the staredown that Peko and Mukuro had.

Byakuya humphed.

“Setting that possibility aside… Let’s assume that our mystery instigator used a different method to cause the blackout.”

Hiyoko sneered.

“Then… who tripped the breaker and how’d they do it? If you can’t answer that, I’mma bop you on the head!”

Ibuki tilted her head curiously.

“Did they throw a stone and hit it?”

“Maybe they used a remote control…” Kazuichi mused.

“Th-They probably messed with the breaker…” Mikan quivered, clasping her hands together nervously.

Sonia hummed doubtfully.

“It does not have to be the breaker… They could have tampered with the power supply and transmitters.”

“Maybe they caused a power surge…?” Mahiru mused.

Hajime raised an index finger astutely.

“Yeah… I think that’s how they went about it! If you guys remember back to just before the blackout, there had been some kind of loud beeping sound in the dining hall. After Togami and I investigated, we found it was the AC control unit – it had been set to activate at 11:30pm, around the same time Owari was murdered!”

A hand flew over Chisa’s mouth in shock.

“The… The AC unit…? B-But I never put that on a timer!” She remembered leaving those units alone because Monomi advised that due to the building’s age, it probably wasn’t a good idea to use too many things at the same time.

“It was the same for the office…” Peko mused, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “An obnoxious beeping, then darkness. You might be onto something, Hinata.”

Fuyuhiko waved a hand airily.

“Yeah, yeah… The AC stuff is definitely suspicious, but that could only be the direct trigger! How the hell did someone cause a power surge? How’d they know the threshold to keep it at?”

Hajime rubbed his chin, frowning as he looked down at the floor, deep in thought.

“That’s probably because…” His eyes widened in realization. “Ikusaba…! Y-You… You helped set that up…”

Mukuro’s brow furrowed at the accusation.

“What do you mean?”

“I remember, when I explored the building before the party that you were helping Komaeda with a small favor! I checked the storage room and saw three irons were plugged in and turned on… Don’t you think those helped max out the building’s energy usage? We definitely didn’t plan on using those, yet, you turned them on!”

Mukuro opened and closed her mouth in shock. In truth, after everything that happened, that small detail had eluded her. But even still…

“B-But… But, it could have just been a coincidence! “ Mukuro spluttered. “Komaeda-kun said he’d need them for later!”

“Need them for **what**?” Byakuya pressed, head turned to the side slightly. “Komaeda should have had no business in that lodge. Even his knowledge of the irons is suspect… How would he have known about them? He should not have set foot in that lodge until this night.”

Mukuro couldn’t supply an answer for that. No flash of insight or inspiration as to why Komaeda-kun would know about the irons… She still believed in his innocence. She still thought the allegations against him were absurd.

Yet… a part of her, in hindsight, did find Komaeda-kun’s knowledge was… suspicious…

Perhaps he was told by one of the people cleaning the building…?

“Regarding the energy usage… They probably asked Monokuma about it.” Chiaki mused, tapping her chin.

“Dun-dun-dunnn~!” Monokuma teased.

“Is she right?!” Monomi screeched. “Such a hateful bear… You deserve to die a thousand deaths!”

Monokuma tilted his head cutely.

“A thousand, you say? If I died that many times… I might really stay dead, y’know?”

“Shut up! You guys just stay quiet!” Mahiru raged in irritation.

“So… I think that pretty much covers the blackout.” Hajime declared, rubbing his chin. “The building’s energy usage was brought to the threshold with the irons. And then all anyone had to do was set the AC units to go off at a time of their choosing! They wouldn’t have to be in the office at all, for this kind of setup. They could be anywhere they want!”

Gundham scowled fiercely.

“However, the most suspicious ones are Ikusaba and Komaeda! Ikusaba turned on the irons herself, and we only have her word that Komaeda asked her to do that.”

Kazuichi’s face scrunched together before he pointed accusingly at the luckster.

“… Hey, that’s right! I saw you! You were standing over by the air conditioner for a while before the blackout! If you wanted, you could have tampered with that thing at any time!”

The breeder reeled back in shock.

“He… was…?” He had his back toward that wall for much of the evening, but he did have vague recollections of people walking behind him at various points… Well, at least one person.

Tanaka cursed his inattentiveness. … Even if that kind of relaxed behavior was to be expected at a party.

Nagito crossed his arms, giving a small grin.

“Good eye, Souda~… You’re right. I was in that corner of the room.”

Chiaki tilted her head curiously.

“Did you tell Ikusaba to plug those irons in?”

The luckster nodded again, happily.

“Yup. That was no perjury on her part. Just my luck that Hinata bumped into her while she was in the middle of doing that…”

“You **did** claim to have caused the blackout…” Nekomaru rumbled, brow furrowing. “But why did you do that?”

Nagito dropped his arms to his sides as he blankly turned to Chisa, who looked unsettled by that behavior of his.

“A-Am I allowed to answer that? Can I speak freely?”

Chisa watched him warily especially with how he phrased that. She turned to the heir pleadingly.

“Togami-kun… isn’t there something else we could talk about, first?”

But Byakuya raised a finger to his temple astutely.

“Actually… now might be the perfect time to review Komaeda’s part in this. The cause of the blackout is behind us, and we need his testimony. We have to determine what he is guilty of.” He crossed his arms again and stared at the luckster sternly. “You may speak.”

Chisa deflated just the tiniest amount. She knew this was inevitable, but… Well, the altercation with the luckster during the investigation was still fresh in her mind.

… And his unhinged giggling was **not** helping sooth her rattled nerves.

“Aha…!” Nagito clutched the side of his head and made a theatrical gesture with his other arm. The warped, demented grin on his face was only matched by the swirls in his eyes, as if layers upon layers of darkness were folding within them. As if hope and despair had been crudely mixed together… “Ahahahahahahahahahaha! The Ultimates are working together to combat the despair of their friend’s death! Ah, how wonderful, how **beautiful** it is! Let’s cut to the chase… You’re correct! It was **my doing** all along! I’m the one who caused the blackout… I’m the one who set off the fireworks… And of course, **I’m** the one who murdered Owari-san! After all, there’s no way I’d knowingly whip out a knife in front of everyone, right?”

Ibuki poked her fingers together nervously.

“Is it just me… or does he seem a little nuts right now?”

Nagito spread out his arms grandiosely.

“I never expected Togami to have night vision goggles, though… Because of that, we had a little scuffle! And, well… you all saw how that played out.” They certainly saw the heir drag him outside like a prisoner. Not to mention the way Togami had bellowed Komaeda’s name and charged him… “But with a twist ending like this, I think we can all agree this ended up being a very interesting mystery. Hahaha! Togami performed admirably~!”

Kazuichi massaged his temple in aggravation.

“J-Just stop it already…! Seriously… what the hell happened to you?!”

“Don’t tell me… is this your true nature? Were you lying to us this entire time?” Mahiru demanded.

Nagito tilted his head curiously.

“Me, lie? That’s outrageous! There’s no way someone like me could ever lie to you guys! I understand better than anyone else that I’m utterly worthless.” The luckster hugged himself creepily. “I’m too arrogant to have dreams or cling to hope… I’m too disdainful to actually try at anything… I’ve made peace with myself that I’m a lowly, stupid, insignificant human who can’t do anything right.”

Ibuki clutched both sides of her face in horror.

“Holy crap! He’s **totally** the type of guy who spent his childhood killing neighborhood pets!”

“I know I like to squish ants and crabs, but this guy’s **lost it** …” Hiyoko muttered.

Chisa wilted with that fanatic, crazed way of talking Nagito had descended to. This was just like earlier… and she still had no good plan of attack for countering this.

“K-Komaeda-kun… please… stop… You’re not **trash** …! None of you are lowly, insignificant, or stupid…” Her heart ached as the fires in the luckster’s eyes simply refused to die down, even from her desperate pleading.

“Oh, Sensei~! You truly are magnificent for putting **any** faith in a guy like me…” Nagito sighed dreamily, still hugging himself. “But it’s still not enough… I… I wanna see that mesmerizing hope of yours become the **Ultimate Hope**! That’s the only way I’ll be satisfied…”

Hajime stared at the luckster owlishly. Was… Was this the real Nagito, after all…?

Nekomaru placed his hands on his hips.

“Hey, Komaeda… If you were behind all of this, then did you also send that threatening letter…? The one Togami got?”

“Yep. I sure did.” Nagito confirmed with a sage nod. “There’s nobody else on this island whose handwriting is **that** painful to look at… Togami should know.”

“But why would you send a threatening letter in the first place…?” Hiyoko’s shoulders had drooped, and she actually appeared vulnerable, for once. Hajime frowned in sympathy at the sight, standing next to the blonde.

Nagito hummed thoughtfully.

“I think… somewhere deep in my heart… I was probably hoping to find someone who would stop my evil deeds.” He chuckled warmly. It was a disturbing sound that had many shivering in dread. “… Well, I bet if that really was my reason, at least some of you would feel sorry for me.”

Teruteru poked his fingers together nervously, averting his eyes from the crazed luckster.

“Y-Y-You’re nuts…!”

Mikan wailed, clutching both sides of her head as she, like Ibuki, tried getting a little space from standing right next to the white-haired boy. Sonia looked far paler than usual, where she was standing. And Kazuichi was pointing at Nagito hysterically.

“L-Let’s just skip to voting time, damnit! No matter how much we talk it out, he’s not gonna change his tune!”

“No shit.” Fuyuhiko sucked in a low breath as he stared at the luckster warily, hands stuffed in his pockets. “I know we gotta be careful, but this guy…? He’s **definitely** lost it…”

Mukuro whirled on the yakuza, as they were adjacent to each other, and gave him a heated glare. Peko tightened her grip on her elbow, lamenting she and Fuyuhiko were spaced so far apart.

Chisa gripped the railing of her witness stand and glared at the luckster with determination. She… She might not have an ideal counterattack yet, but the important thing right now was gathering information. After all, even if he was misguided… Nagito was still her student.

“Komaeda-kun… If you don’t mind, how **did** you smuggle in everything that you did?”

Nagito straightened up at that prompt, his face becoming blank again.

“… I beg your pardon?”

Byakuya frowned, keeping his arms crossed.

“Fireworks, two knives, and that blood-soaked cloth… You didn’t have them on you when I performed your body search. Ikusaba was quite eager to point that out, and I know she’s right… That would mean, somehow, you smuggled in those items.”

“T-Two knives…?” Kazuichi seemed to freeze at this information.

Hajime nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, don’t you remember, Souda? Komaeda had one knife on him that Togami confiscated after the blackout. And then there was the knife that killed Owari, which was left stabbed in her back…”

“That Togami **claims** to have confiscated from Komaeda-kun…” Mukuro grunted distastefully.

Hiyoko growled impatiently, glaring daggers at the luckster.

“Never mind that! Did you ask your **slave** to hide that stuff, for you? She was on cleaning duty, wasn’t she?” The dancer hotly accused. “I’ll bet you buried it in the trash, since that’s what you seem to like calling yourself.”

Mukuro gripped the railing of her witness stand hard enough the others could hear it. Hajime held up his hands peacefully, facing Mukuro as he did so. After all… He was standing right next to the offensive blonde.

“Wh-What Saionji is trying to say, is that Ikusaba… could have… snuck stuff in…? M-Maybe?” He wilted under the soldier’s heated stare.

Teruteru hummed doubtfully, rubbing his chin.

“I dunno… Ikusaba-chan helped me organize the kitchen with Sensei… That ate up a lot of time.”

Chisa poked her cheek as she hummed thoughtfully.

“And when she wasn’t helping in the kitchen, I made sure she and Nevermind set up the dining hall after it was cleaned… At worst, she moved between the dining hall, kitchen, and storage room during the preparation period. I’m pretty sure she was with at least one of us for most of that back-and-forth stuff…”

Nevermind gave a formal beam at this.

“That is correct! And when she was not with one of us, she was almost always back right away! I… ‘totes’ admired her work ethic! Ikusaba-san is amazing!”

Mukuro blinked owlishly at the praise that came out of nowhere for her. She didn’t think she had done anything deserving of praise… And yet… She couldn’t say she disliked being complimented. Komaeda-kun gave them out all the time – which wasn’t a bad thing, really! – but when the others did it… It felt… nice.

“This is going nowhere.” Byakuya muttered. He glared suspiciously at Nagito. “Komaeda. Tell us how you smuggled in the weapons.”

Nagito maintained his rigid posture and blank expression. It was clear he had no intention of saying anything. Hiyoko groaned in frustration.

“Damnit! When you’re backed into a corner, you sure like to clam up, don’t you?”

Peko tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“I… believe I might be able to shed light on where the knives and cloth were hidden… Or at the least, one of the knives.” She revealed. “In the bathroom, there were two trash cans. One of them was a normal, open waste bin – the other was a trash can with a pedal to open the top.”

Ibuki cheered, dancing about a little.

“Pedals are meant to be leaped onto with everything ya got~!”

Chisa’s brow furrowed.

“Th-There were… two trash cans? But when I cleaned it earlier today, there was just the one! I know there was!”

“Was it the one without a pedal?” Peko asked, genuinely curious. When she received a nod, the swordswoman continued. “As I suspected… The metal can was added later. There was a piece of duct tape that was halfway peeled off the inside of the lid when I found it. The lid was large enough it could fit a knife underneath. What’s more, there had previously been a cloth hanging on the towel rack; I know it wasn’t a towel, from the feel of it. I can’t say with absolute certainty, but there’s the possibility it was about the size of a tablecloth… It was folded a couple of times to give the appearance of a normal towel one uses for showers.”

Hajime nodded quietly as he remembered seeing that, too, when he peeked in there before the party. But what did that mean? If Nagito left his supplies in there, anybody could have pilfered the knife and cloth. That… That only gave them the smuggler’s route.

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head nervously as he chuckled.

“As for the fireworks… I dunno if they were all in there at one point, but I found an unused firework in the desk drawer in the office!”

Gundham flashed a dramatic pose.

“That desk looked like quite the grizzly spectacle~…! A nefarious fiend most certainly emptied the contents of a drawer to make room for their dastardly ingredients for a demonic ritual! Supernova Silver Fox San-D has pierced the veil of this mystery, laying the truth bare for all to see~!”

Kazuichi ran a hand over his head, grumbling in mild exasperation.

“I’m the one who opened the drawers, y’know…”

Byakuya’s hand curled into a fist furiously as he gritted his teeth. He turned on Nagito more intensely.

“… I myself saw the mess on that desk, before the party… If I had just been a little more thorough…!” He growled in frustration. “Talk, Komaeda! Did you or did you not use the bathroom and office as smuggling routes?!”

The luckster waved a hand lazily, giving a closed-eyed, bashful smile.

“Okay, okay~… You worked out the smuggling routes! Guess I can’t hide anything from you guys.” He spread out his arms again grandiosely, grin widening excitedly. “There’s really no point beating around the bush anymore! You know how I caused the blackout. You know how I snuck in the murder weapon and fireworks… Might as well jump to voting time so you guys can move on with your peaceful, tropical lives, right?”

Kazuichi trembled a little as he pointed at the luckster in frustration.

“Y-Yeah…! W-We solved everything! S-So we’re done.”

Sonia adopted a relieved smile, herself.

“It… It is quite a relief, when the killer confesses like this. It is like a burden has been settled on our shoulders!”

“Th-The saying goes ‘a burden has been lifted’, Sonia-san…” The mechanic chuckled nervously, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

Teruteru perked up at this turn of events.

“If we wrapped up this early, all that food hasn’t gone to waste… A late night snack can’t hurt, right? Eat until your stomachs are fit to burst~!”

Mikan trembled nervously, crying out.

“E-E-Eating too much i-is d-definitely not healthy…! A-And it’s recommended you don’t eat this late, either!”

Fuyuhiko scoffed, crossing his arms and looking off to the side.

“Let’s just execute this bastard already and be done with him. I’m sick of listening to his simpering, nasally voice…”

“Komaeda-chan turned out to be a real creep!” Ibuki rubbed the back of her head anxiously, still not looking thrilled to be standin next to the guy.

“Y-You guys…” Chisa moaned a little, not liking how a lot of her students seemed eager to execute one of their own. Then again, with how Nagito had been acting, it was natural they’d be upset with him. _‘But still… Something about this feels… off…’_

The orange-haired woman wasn’t the only one having such doubts. Hajime, Byakuya, Chiaki, and Mukuro all looked dissatisfied or contemplative, to varying degrees. Then you had the more neutral classmates like Nekomaru, Mahiru, Peko, and Gundham, who would go with what everyone else decided to do.

“Komaeda-kun didn’t do it!” Mukuro barked out yet again, sounding as defiant and frustrated as ever.

Hiyoko rolled her eyes, spitting out caustically.

“Do you have any **proof** of that? ‘Cause he’s pretty suspicious, y’know! He’s confessed to everything, so if you don’t have anything else to say, just shut up! You’re stressing me out as much as Pig Barf’s ugly, stuttering face!”

Mikan wailed.

“U-Ugly s-stuttering face?!”

Nagito laughed warmly again, sending another round of shivers around the circle.

“Ikusaba-san, I really am lucky to have had a friend like you! But you shouldn’t trouble yourself with worrying about trash like me. This was just the opening act to your heart-pounding life on Jabberwock Island~! I’m sure with my death, you’ll all find peace…” He spread out his arms grandiosely and belted out a raspy laugh. “It was I who caused the blackout, set off the fireworks, and stabbed Owari in the back! A menace like me really deserves the worst kind of death…”

Hajime’s eyes snapped to the luckster at that confession. Something about that… still bothered him. And he seemed to have a hunch about what it was that unsettled him.

“Hey, Komaeda… If you stabbed Owari, why… why were your positions in the dining hall so far apart?”

Nagito took a more arrogant stance at that question that seemed to come out of nowhere.

“What was that…?”

Hajime rubbed his chin, looking down slightly.

“Well, it’s just… It’s like Souda said, earlier. You were over by Souda and Tanaka’s corner of the room right before the blackout. Koizumi’s diagram supports this. Owari, on the other hand… was clear toward the front of the dining hall, on the left side! How’d you navigate through the dark when we were all stumbling around?”

Nagito hummed thoughtfully.

“Owari and I were that far apart…? That **is** weird! But what if I just used each fireworks display to work my way towards Owari and murder her? That might explain it, right?”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

“No. Because by the time I got my night vision goggles on, you were still on the right side of the dining hall. I highly doubt you could have murdered Owari while still setting off those fireworks, one right after the other… It’s not feasible to journey from the right side of the hall to the left, and then journey back.”

Nagito took a pompous stance again.

“Are you sure? You could just be lying, y’know. If you’re the only one who saw me in that darkness, who’s to say that you aren’t just protecting me? We also only have your word that you confiscated that second knife from me…”

Hiyoko groaned, grabbing both sides of her head.

“Ugh…! You’re so confusing! If Togami’s lying about everything, how could you be the killer without a murder weapon?!”

Nagito shrugged carelessly.

“I just want to solidify the foundation of Togami-kun’s testimony! He’s the only one who could see, so he could say anything he likes and we wouldn’t know any better. He could be telling a white lie **somewhere** in that testimony, y’know?”

Byakuya’s scowl deepened.

“For one, lying would get **me** killed, if you were the culprit. And I would not throw away the lives of everyone here, just for the sake of the killer… That goes against everything I have promised as your leader. Second…” He trailed off as Nidai cut in.

“Hey, Togami bumped into me during the blackout. If he says you were on the right side of the room, he was heading in the right direction. I was behind that left middle table.”

Mahiru nodded sternly.

“I was, too, and he was being totally reckless running like that! I’m still shocked we let a pushy guy like you lead us.”

Byakuya huffed exasperatedly.

“You see? There are witnesses to my actions. Furthermore, you burned your fingers when you set off that third firework… So we know you did at least that much. However, whether or not you also killed Owari, **that** still has yet to be proven.”

“You don’t even have a motive… do you?” Hajime chipped in, earning an approving nod from the heir. “Why go after Owari if you were all the way over there? If you just wanted to kill someone, Souda and Tanaka were more within your reach…”

Nagito hummed doubtfully.

“Well… I mean, if I went after them, you’d **immediately** suspect me, right…? I just went after someone who was a little more challenging~…” The luckster shrugged his shoulders again carelessly. “Besides, we’re all strangers! I don’t think anyone would have a motive to kill Owari in particular… Well, except maybe Nidai, who spent more time with her than anyone else…”

Chiaki raised an index finger astutely.

“If being obvious was something you were worried about, you wouldn’t have confessed right off the bat.”

Nagito sighed breezily, crossing his arms.

“Well, I guess I really did have a change of heart after Monokuma explained the rules fully. I didn’t want you guys to be executed.”

Hajime groaned at the luckster’s obstinance. At this point they’d keep going back and forth… They needed a new topic. Thankfully, Yukizome-sensei provided just that.

“We didn’t narrow down Owari’s death yet, right? How about we narrow it down as much as we can, just to be thorough.”

Tanaka arched an eyebrow inquisitively.

“But how would we do that…? Did Togami perhaps see Owari while acquiring the All-Seeing Eye?”

Byakuya gritted his teeth, turning his head away slightly.

“… No. As I told Hinata and Ikusaba, I did not catch a glimpse of Owari even once, during the blackout. I… was focusing on locating the madman setting off the fireworks. But as Owari had been standing nearby before the blackout, I did find her lack of presence… odd.”

“M… Maybe she was already murdered…?” Mikan suggested, poking her index fingers together nervously.

“… I wouldn’t be able to tell you.” The Togami heir lamented, raising a finger to his temple. “The area around me was a mess, due to the collapsed table, as well as you and Saionji both being on the floor. When I saw the third match being lit over by Komaeda, my attention was solely on resolving that threat…”

Peko calmly rubbed her chin.

“If Togami did not glimpse Owari at all… Then… Ibuki. Perhaps your testimony will be useful, after all.”

Kazuichi blinked owlishly.

“Ibuki…? What’d she see that we didn’t?”

Ibuki waved her arm in the air excitedly.

“Hellooo~? Did Souda-chan see that pitch black?! Nobody could see anything in there except Byakuya-chan!” The musician struck a cute pose. “But Ibuki heard everything, oh yes! Ibuki heard it all with her super-amazing ears~!”

… And then the musician proceeded to recite word for word what she had relayed to Pekoyama during the investigation.

~*~

_A moment later… there was darkness. All the lights went out at once, and since the windows were covered up, it was a pitch blackness throughout the whole lodge._

_“Uwah! It’s a b-blackout!” Mahiru cried out._

_“Hey, I can’t see anything!” Kazuichi whined, stumbling around in the dark._

_“I-It’s pitch black! My future is pitch black!” Ibuki screamed super importantly._

_The sound of frantic footsteps and other screams echoed throughout the hall. Yukizome-sensei, Koizumi, Saionji, Tsumiki, Nidai, Nevermind, Kazuichi… they were totes yelling at the top of their lungs._

_“E-Everyone, calm down!” Yukizome-sensei’s voice rang out, clear and loud. “We have to stay calm at a time like this!”_

_Then a match was totally lit! Ibuki heard it with her super-amazing ears~_

_And then a firework totally zipped and zoomed across the room after it was ignited, and then it **smashed** into the wall, over by the covered windows, lighting up plenty of the room and making a bunch of silhouettes crystal clear from where Ibuki was, in the back. Well, that was an easy-peasy way to whip everyone into a frenzy, don’tcha think?_

_Ibuki didn’t know what was going on, but she was kinda getting pumped up from all the sudden exciting stuff, so she listened even harder with her super-amazing ears~_

_They were pretty much all screaming at that point… well, mostly everyone. Owari-chan had her mouth stuffed full o’ food, but she sounded kinda mad. Another match got lit. Another volley of fireworks launched across the room, exploding along the wall in a brilliant array of lights. Ibuki saw so many cool, awesome silhouettes~!_

_“Somebody turn the damn lights on!” Akane barked. “I can’t eat like this, you know?!”_

_“Is this **really** the time for that?!” Mahiru cried out in disbelief. Ibuki thought she might’ve heard some other sounds, too, but everybody was kinda panic-y at the time._

_“Wah! Don’t step on my feet!” Hiyoko whined gruffly, bumping into a table._

_“WAAAAAAH!” Mikan wailed, making a big crashing sound as she tumbled over a table in the dark. Kinda sounded like the table was all sorts of broken, too…_

_“SHIIIIIITTTTT!!!” Nekomaru bellowed._

_“What in the nine Hells is this madness?!” Gundham yelled out._

_“I **said** watch where you’re **going** …!” The dancer grunted with exerted effort. Kinda sounded like she might have been in the middle of standing back up. Was Saionji-chan goofing off like Tsumiki-chan?_

_Oh wells. There was lots more fun stuff going on. Yukizome-sensei was trying to call out for her, Nanami, and Hinata-chan, since they were the closest ones to her before the lights went out. Then you had Hinata-chan hyperventilating. Nanami-chan was mumbling something about a game and finding switches to light up areas. Tanaka-chan was telling his cute little hamsters to stay in his scarf. Kazuichi-chan was screaming at the top of his lungs about psychos needing to be banned from fireworks. Nevermind-chan was a little hyperventilate-y, too – she was stumbling around close to Ibuki’s table… or, well… the table at the front. Cloths were rustling somewhere kinda nearby, but Ibuki was focused on other noises. Nidai-chan was also screaming **suuuper** loud. Koizumi-chan was very grouchy. _

_“What the hell?! What’s going on here?!” Byakuya-chan sounded so cool and in charge~!_

_Uh-oh, Spaghettio’s~! Ibuki could hear a third match being lit!_

_“ **KOMAEDA**!” Togami-chan roared like a lion~! He totally charged like a wild elephant, too~! Koizumi-chan and Nidai-chan didn’t like getting bumped into, in Togami-chan’s rush to Komaeda-chan, wherever he was. _

_The third fireworks exploded while all of that was happening. Pretty sparkles~! Yaaay, more silhouettes~! The sound of scuffling could be heard from somewhere nearby, kinda sounded like Togami-chan and Komaeda-chan were wrestling~…_

_“You guys? Where are you? Wasn’t the blackout just in the kitchen…?” Teruteru whispered in distress from what must have been the entrance to the dining hall._

_“Perhaps the breaker overloaded…?” Sonia speculated, though she too sounded quite shaken._

_… And theeen the fire broke out, on the far end of the room. Ibuki was totes outta there~! Ibuki didn’t need a tan that bad, so Ibuki was like the first one outside. … You know, if you didn’t count Ikusaba-chan._

~*~

Ibuki nodded sagely, grinning ear-to-ear while crossing her arms.

“As you can see, Owari-chan was still alive after the second firework went off! Then there was a bit of time where everything was all upside-doodley, and theeen the third match was lit!”

Byakuya gnawed at his fingers in concern as he absorbed all that… immensely helpful information.

“… I… I think we found a very approximate time of death for Owari. She had to have been killed between the second and third fireworks going off… because I didn’t see her at all, when I put on the goggles. And after the third firework went off, the fire broke out, and I ordered you all to clear out. It would not be feasible to kill someone during that chaos while also hiding the body so no one would trip over it… It **had** to be between those second and third fireworks. Yet how did I miss it…?”

Hajime stared at the heir strangely.

“You… didn’t see anyone draped in a cloth or anything?” No one had any bloodstains on them, after they all got outside. Well, Mikan admittedly had a bit smeared on her leg… and he was pretty sure if she had any other bloodstains on her clothes, Yukizome-sensei would’ve noticed them before making the nurse go change to deal with the food stains on her back.

… So someone definitely had to use that tablecloth to block the blood splatters from the stabbings. There was no two ways about it.

“No.” Byakuya kept gnawing at his fingernails anxiously as he himself tried thinking back on his memory of the blackout. “As I told you, Hinata… If I saw anything conclusive like that, I would have a suspect in mind.”

And he wouldn’t bother scrutinizing Komaeda like this. He already knew the luckster couldn’t have committed this murder, based on where he was on the other side of the room. But that still left so many questions, like how he managed to miss catching a glimpse of the killer… how he missed seeing Owari at all… He only had more questions to show for it.

“Well, I guess all of this proved one thing…” Mukuro declared, deathly calm. Yet her icy glare betrayed the anger boiling beneath the surface, as her attention was solely on the heir. “Komaeda-kun didn’t do it. He didn’t have the tablecloth, and he wasn’t anywhere near Owari’s table during the approximated time of death. **Komaeda-kun isn’t the killer**.”

There was a temporary, unsettling silence as the soldier confirmed this for them all. Deep down, they all knew she was right. For once, the stars lined up to prove the luckster’s innocence beyond a shadow of a doubt… It wasn’t long before they erupted into chaos.

“WHAT THE FUUUUUUUCK?!” Kazuichi screamed, face contorted in a twisted panic.

“Komaeda-kun… didn’t… kill Owari…?” Sonia gasped, appearing ghastly pale as her hands were clasped together anxiously.

Teruteru clutched his head in a panic.

“Wh-Wh-What the heck are we gonna do now?! He was our culprit! He confessed and everything!”

“WAAAHHH!” Mikan cried, clutching both sides of her head as well.

“Wh-Who else is LEEEEFFFFFTTTTT?!” Nekomaru bellowed, apparently following a trend. “Komaeda’s the only one who knew about the smuggling routes, wasn’t he?!”

Byakuya shook his head firmly before he resumed gnawing on his fingernails.

“Ikusaba would have been the next one to scrutinize, but neither she nor Pekoyama nor Kuzuryu were in the dining hall during the blackout. Mioda’s testimony confirmed that I hadn’t somehow missed them. We’re… we’re out of leads.”

“You’d like that to be true, wouldn’t you?” Mukuro refuted the heir, once more gripping the railing of her witness stand harshly. “Too bad for you, the facts don’t align in your favor, Togami. I remember Mioda’s testimony pretty clearly; you were quiet until the second fireworks went off. And with night vision goggles, it would have been child’s play to avoid everyone and murder Owari…”

The heir clenched a fist in aggravation, gritting his teeth.

“I didn’t know about the smuggling routes! So I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to slip out and grab the tablecloth and knife from the bathroom!”

“Who said you used the supplies Komaeda-kun provided?” Mukuro returned coldly. You had that duralumin case prepared in advance; for all we know, there was another tablecloth and knife hidden in there. Maybe you used the ones in the bathroom as red herrings.”

Byakuya pointed at the soldier authoritatively.

“I swore to protect each and every one of you! There is no way I would have premeditated a murder. If I had the advanced knowledge of what Komaeda was plotting, I would have **prevented** it, not instigate it! All I got was that murder threat; I did not know a blackout was coming.”

“Talk is cheap.” Mukuro’s tone was clipped as she kept up her glaring contest with the heir. “You had those goggles, even if it was ‘coincidence’. You had the opportunity. You were **right there** , mere feet from the victim before the blackout. Why shouldn’t I believe you’re the murderer? You clearly meant for Komaeda-kun to take the fall for you.”

The tension in the air was palpable, and Hajime could tell Mukuro’s arguments were gaining ground, among the students. Yukizome-sensei seemed worried about Togami, too, but she seemed lost as to how to reassure them all that Togami was innocent. Hajime could feel… it was going to be up to him to support Togami here. The heir hadn’t exactly made a lot of people happy, as the class rep; they wouldn’t be keen to stick up for him.

… But Hajime had seen the effort Togami put in to protect them. Unlike Ikusaba, he couldn’t just immediately jump to the idea that the heir was faking it the entire time.

“I-Ikusaba… wait…” Hajime pleaded, feeling the need to steel his nerves as the soldier focused on him next. “Look. I know you’re still mad we suspected Komaeda. I… I wanted to believe in Komaeda, too, and I’m glad he couldn’t be the killer. But… just like I wanted to believe in Komaeda, I believe in Togami, too. His desire to protect everybody isn’t fake.”

“Do you have any proof he’s not faking it?” Mukuro reiterated her stance, eyes narrowing.

Hajime clenched his jaw and rubbed his chin in thought. He knew he didn’t have anything conclusive that Mukuro would accept… Not about Togami’s intentions.

So he’d have to try a different approach.

“I might not have proof about that, specifically.” The brunet conceded. He was quick to clarify when Mukuro opened her mouth. “But do you have any proof that the cloth and knife we found were not the ones from the bathroom? You should know, just as well as me, we never found a second cloth lying around; and the one from the bathroom definitely disappeared. It’d be kinda half-baked to prepare the murder weapon, but not a way to prevent incriminating yourself, don’t you think? There’s definitely two knives, but not two tablecloths.”

Now it was Mukuro’s turn to clench her jaw shut. She… didn’t have an answer for that. And by the look of everyone else murmuring to themselves, it appeared no one had encountered such a cloth.

And then like a herald of chaos… Komaeda-kun decided to speak his mind again. Mukuro gripped her witness stand’s railing as she could feel more stress and anxiety coming on. Great.

“Okay… I guess it’s time for me to pass the torch, right? That’s what you guys want?” Nagito massaged his brow, squinting at his classmates.

“P… Pass the… torch…?” Sonia echoed, a hand over her mouth and the color drained from her face.

“We’re going to ask **the real killer** , not an imposter like me, to show themselves!” Nagito spread out his arms grandiosely. “As much as I appreciate your defense, Ikusaba, accusing Togami-kun was outrageous! Even I could tell he really did mean us well. So let’s not beat around the bush… I know the name of the true killer~!”

Mahiru’s eyes widened as she pointed at him accusingly.

“Y-Y-You **know**?! If you knew, why the hell did you confess to being the culprit in the first place?!”

Nagito tilted his head curiously.

“Why did I come forward as the killer…? Well, that’s obvious! This trial was not just a stepping stone for you guys, but the killer, too! Everything had to be absolutely perfect, or even I would be left in the dark. So, allow me to give you guys the biggest hint so far~! A hint so big that it might as well tie a noose around the killer’s neck… The killer is… Kazuichi Souda.”

As the luckster paused for seeming dramatic effect, the mechanic bellowed out in shock and horror.

“ **What the FUUUUUUCK**?!”

But Nagito wasn’t done.

“Mikan Tsumiki.”

The nurse jolted upright at being named.

“H-H-H-H-HUH?! EEK!”

“Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu.” Nagito laughed, waving his hand casually. The yakuza shook a fist at him in outrage.

“What’d you say, fucker?!”

“… And Sonia Nevermind.” Nagito wrapped up his list of names.

Sonia trembled as she was reduced to a ghastly pale complexion.

“I… I have… no idea… what you mean…”

Nagito elaborated on his little game. The corners of his mouth twitched into an amused grin.

“The killer’s absolutely lurking among you guys, I’m **sure** of it~! After all… Each of us had a nice little **chat** earlier in the day, right? I gave you all the knowledge you needed to commit this murder without anyone discovering you~! I even did just as I promised. I became your patsy. I was willing to put down my life so that one of you could let your Hope shine~! Alas… The worst has come to pass, and I’ve been knocked out of the running. The floor’s all yours~!”

… Well, that escalated quickly. Everyone was quick to make their emotions known, both suspect and bystander alike.

“You little fucker! **This** is why you wanted me at the party, isn’t it?! You didn’t tell me **shit** …” The yakuza bellowed furiously.

“K-Komaeda! What the hell?!” Hajime exclaimed, making a vague, panicked gesture at the chaos that only the luckster seemed content to be in.

Teruteru combed his hair nervously.

“Well, this should make it easy, right? We just need to whittle it down some more…”

“Like hell it does!” Mahiru sighed exasperatedly, hands on her hips as she glared reprovingly at the luckster. “Why are we even trusting him at all right now?! He’s lied so much up until now! All he’s done is put pressure on two poor, defenseless girls!”

Peko rubbed her chin speculatively.

“While I admit he has not been completely honest, he has been candid with some of the facts we’ve learned up until now… But naming four people like this most certainly speaks of ulterior motives…” The swordswoman murmured, looking troubled.

“WAAAH! I-I’m not the killerrrrrr…! I promise I’m not the killer!” Mikan wailed, clutching both sides of her head.

“Oh yeah, sob harder, you nasty pig-faced troll! We’ll **totally** believe you just ‘cause you **cry**!” Hiyoko hissed, glaring darkly at the nurse.

“Th-That goes for me, too!” Kazuichi cried. “I was standing right around where Komaeda wassssss…!”

“A-As… was… I…” Sonia choked out, finding it difficult to formulate a sentence.

Gundham seethed furiously.

“Not just my disciple, but you cast aspersions on the Dark Queen as well?! Nagito Komaeda, I shall tear you limb from limb…!”

Nekomaru cried out sorrowfully.

“B-B-But… Why would any of **those** guys murder Akane?! It doesn’t make any sense…!”

“Holy crap…!” Ibuki also cried out, though she did so in shock. “Did everybody but Ibuki know a murder was gonna happen?!”

Chiaki tapped her chin doubtfully.

“I don’t think that’s quite it… This trick relied on most of us not knowing. It’s just that a few of us were scared into either acting, or keeping quiet… I think. Hmm.”

Mukuro and Byakuya remained quiet through all this; the soldier seeming placated that Nagito wasn’t on the list of suspects, while the heir was glaring sourly at the luckster. Finally, Chisa spoke up loudly to draw all their attention.

“ **That’s enough**!” Once she had the floor, the orange-haired woman looked around, eyes softening. “Everyone… I know how hard this all is, right now. I hate scrutinizing any one of you… But if we’re going to make it through this, we have to remain calm. Thanks to everything we learned up until now, we **have** whittled down our list of suspects, at least a little… This time will be no different! So… just hang in there. Okay?”

The older woman’s words seemed to have a balming effect on the group, as they always had. The suspects in question still looked wound up, but that was to be expected – no one appreciated being put under the microscope. Byakuya nodded approvingly at the Ultimate Housekeeper, crossing his arms again.

“Well said. That is precisely the attitude to have.” He turned to stare at Hajime. “Hinata. Help me evaluate each of these people. We need to ascertain, once again, how much of what Komaeda said is truth, and how much of it is lie. We cannot let him do as he pleases anymore.”

Mukuro, of course, seemed to take issue with that attitude. But Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly and cut in before she did.

“That’s great, but… Where should we begin?”

Byakuya raised an index finger to his temple astutely.

“… Kuzuryu.” The heir prompted.

“What the fuck do you want, you fat bastard?!” The yakuza growled, curling his hand into a fist.

“You said that Komaeda is the reason you showed up, tonight. Just what did he tell you?” Byakuya arched an eyebrow when the yakuza’s lips thinned and he crossed his arms, looking off to the side.

“Don’t see why I hafta report everything to you. I thought you had a bug up your ass already, and that you were gonna protect everybody? What happened to that?” The yakuza spat challengingly, side glaring at the heir.

Byakuya did not rise to the bait. But he did arch an eyebrow, unimpressed.

“You do realize, there is no point in hiding what you know? If you’ll recall, you and Pekoyama are each other’s alibis. Komaeda’s aspersions regarding you never held water in the first place.”

Fuyuhiko dropped his arms to the side and stared a bit wide-eyed at the heir in shock at his frankness. But then he placed one hand on his hip and dipped his head as he heaved a sigh.

“Even if you say that… I still can’t tell you. It’s a private matter.” The yakuza heir grumbled, crossing his arms and looking off to the side again. “But since you recognize that much, I… I’ll say he **really** didn’t tell me jackshit. He just told me it’d be in my ‘best interests’ to attend, so… I said to hell with it and came anyway. Been real annoying seeing that bastard run circles around all of you chucklefucks… He’s got balls, I’ll give him that.”

Byakuya’s frown deepened. The explanation wasn’t completely satisfactory… but he would take it for now. He nodded reluctantly and turned to the mechanic next.

“… Souda. You’ve been accusing Komaeda since the investigation started. You will explain everything he told you, and what you did about it.”

Kazuichi shook a fist at the heir in aggravation.

“The hell, man?! You’re gonna believe some yakuza over me?!”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“You’ve been jumping the gun all night, Souda… It’s not like we’re saying that you’re the killer. But if you want us to believe in you, you have to do your part.”

Kazuichi pulled his beanie over his head stressfully.

“Uggghhh… Fiiine…” He moaned, just knowing this wouldn’t help his case.

~*~

_Nagito smiled disarmingly as he approached the mechanic who was walking in a daze away from the zoo after the sun began to set. Kazuichi rubbed his brow in slight aggravation at having to talk to someone else so soon._

_“Waddya want, dude? I just wanna go to my room and crash for a couple of hours…”_

_Nagito chuckled lightly._

_“Oh, Souda-kun… Don’t worry, I’ll only take a few moments of your time, I promise~… And if you won’t hear me out, I’m **sure** I’ll find someone else who will.”_

_Kazuichi arched an eyebrow suspiciously._

_“What’s **that** mean?!”_

_Nagito raised up his hands peacefully and laughed._

_“I’m just concerned about our state of affairs, Souda-kun! We’re so **stressed** over this killing business when we should be confront it head-on~! After all… Monokuma is tenacious. He’s not going to give up after giving us one motive. A murder **is going to happen**. It’s practically fate.” Nagito raised a hand to his face and stared at it, an unnerving smile on his face. “That’s why taking the initiative is so important, y’know? If we proceed at Monokuma’s pace, **anything** could happen! Therefore, if **we** take the wheel, we at least minimize the damage… Isn’t that the **best** outcome, in this situation?”_

_Kazuichi chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head._

_“Wh-Whoa, there… If you start talking like that, someone might think you’re plotting murder or somethin’!”_

_“I am.”_

_Funny how two simple words can make a rock settle in one’s stomach. Kazuichi’s nervous chuckles were increasing frantically._

_“G-Good one, dude… Okay, where’s the camera?” The mechanic looked around suspiciously, only for him to be highly disturbed by the twisted smile on the luckster’s face as he spread out his arms theatrically._

_“Why, Souda, trash like me would never joke about something like this~!” The luckster gave a wheezy, rasping laugh. “All I want you to know is, **I will support you**! I’m giving you the opportunity here to kill to your heart’s desire and get away from this island. It’s literally that simple~! You could kill **me** if you wanted to. I won’t mind, really. If trash like me can be a stepping ladder for the **Ultimate Mechanic** , to reach the heights you were always meant to achieve, then I’ll gladly lay down my life~!”_

_Kazuichi trembled and shook a fist at the white-haired boy in outrage._

_“What the fuck, dude?! Who even says that?! I’m not gonna kill you, even if you are a freak!”_

_Nagito tilted his head curiously._

_“Hmm…? What’s the matter? You’re not worried about me, are you? Don’t be! It’s like I said, I’m utterly worthless – **you’re** the priority here. So that’s why I’ve taken everything into account for you. Tonight, I’ve arranged for a blackout to happen. Now, you might be thinking it will be difficult to kill someone when visibility is nil, but I took that into account, too! I’ll be your **shining light** so you can escape this island… I’ve prepared a knife in a trash can in the bathroom of that lodge, and a tablecloth for you to shield yourself from the blood. If you use those… you’ll **definitely** make it out of this nightmare alive~! Everyone will be so focused on me that you’ll get away free and clear!”_

_Kazuichi palmed his forehead and shuddered._

_“Y-You’re nuts…! This is… This is insane…!”_

_Nagito tilted his head again curiously._

_“Hmm…? I really don’t follow. Souda-kun, every sports fan wants their team to win the championship match, right? That’s exactly what I’m doing right here~! All your hopes, dreams for the future… I want you to pit them against the **Despair** of murdering a friend! When you do that… I just **know** your Hope will be a splendid thing to behold~! And if **you** don’t want to chase your dream that far… I know I’ll find someone that will.”_

~*~

As Kazuichi finished recapping what the luckster had told him in secret, he continued tugging his beanie over his head in distress.

“I-It’s not my fault! The bastard said if we derailed him tonight, he’d just find another way some other time! S-So… I-I thought I’d let **him** make the dumbass move. I didn’t go anywhere near that bathroom before the blackout! I didn’t know he actually talked to others, definitely not Sonia-san!”

And that really worried him. Just what did that psycho say to her? If it was anything like the stuff he was told, Souda was gonna kick that guy’s ass…!

“Before you all say a bad word against him, know that I have already lectured my disciple on the error of his ways.” Tanaka buried the lower half of his face in his scarf, looking off to the side. “Souda was wrong to commit to inaction, but after hearing that rubbish, I cannot blame him for wanting a swift death for that sinner. Most humans would feel the same, if not try to murder Komaeda themselves; I praise Souda for his restraint, at the very least.”

Everyone else, meanwhile, absorbed Souda’s story with horror and disbelief. Hajime was one of the first ones to find his voice as he turned to the luckster, ashen.

“K-K-Komaeda… **What the hell**?! Why’d you tell… **anyone** that stuff?!”

Nagito waved casually, chuckling.

“It’s like I told Souda~! I’m the ultimate Hope fanboy! I even tried telling Yukizome-sensei much the same things during the investigation, but even she wasn’t willing to hear me out… Don’t you guys think that’s a little unfair? Aren’t teachers supposed to be impartial?”

“You’re not just some fanboy, you’re a **bully**!” Mahiru bellowed, hands on her hips. “During the investigation, Tsumiki said you told her all of that stuff, too… Didn’t even let her get a word in edgewise! I promised I wouldn’t say anything because she was afraid of what you might do, but now everyone knows. Don’t you feel even a little bit of regret?”

Nagito held up his hands peacefully. 

“I **do** feel bad for overwhelming Tsumiki-san and Souda-kun, but no, I don’t regret anything I said. Why should I apologize when that’s how the world works? Surely, you guys realize a murder was inevitable. When people have Hope, they’re destined to clash with others, someday… I just… sped the process along~…”

Byakuya heaved a sigh as a number of others seemed they were going to take issue with the luckster’s system of beliefs. He decided to cut them off before they got sidetracked.

“Listen. Komaeda can be dealt with later. Right now we need to identify the killer before we’re all executed…”

Monokuma pumped his paw in the air excitedly.

“That’s right~! That’s what **Class Trial** is all about~! If you’re gonna Segway and talk about Despair, that’s great. But if it’s garbage like Hope, then I don’t wanna snooze to that noise… Voting Time comes when I get booored~!”

Sonia licked her lips, hands fidgeting nervously with her bow.

“Th-The important thing is narrowing down our list of suspects, right? Can we trust Souda-kun’s testimony…?”

Gundham crossed his arms stubbornly.

“Souda was toward the right side of the dining hall, with me. As were you, Dark Queen. Do not fall for that sinner’s honeyed lies…”

Hajime rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“… It’s true. Komaeda even praised Souda’s powers of observation, when he confessed being over by the air conditioner. Not to mention, with Souda screaming as much as he did during the blackout, I can’t really fathom how he’d sneak over to Owari and kill her…”

Mahiru nodded slowly raising an index finger astutely, frowning.

“Plus, the photos I took confirmed his location. He’s a little too twitchy for a guy, but I think he’s clean.”

“I did run by him, when apprehending Komaeda…” Byakuya mused thoughtfully. “Very well. We’ll cross him off the list, too.”

Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully.

“That leaves Nevermind and Tsumiki… Where were they during the blackout?”

Mahiru hummed, bringing out her diagram as a reference.

“Even thought she was by the table with Souda and Tanaka, Nevermind was more situated in the center of the three tables with food. And Tsumiki…” The redhead paled as she did a double take. “N-No… Guys, don’t…”

Hiyoko sneered at the plead, seeming to remember the nurse’s location, herself.

“She was over by Owari! So she **could** have done it…” The dancer declared in a conspiratorial tone. She then snapped towards the Princess. “… But I don’t buy it! Nevermind’s been suspicious all night! She was even mean to me and kept hiding **something**! I’ll bet it’s ‘cause she killed that big-titted cow just so she could return to her country, people, or whatever!”

Sonia’s hands clasped together desperately and she squeezed her eyes shut tightly.

“P-Please stop, Saionji-san…! I-I… I did not kill Owari! I absolutely could not have!”

Nekomaru cocked his head curiously.

“Huh…? Why’s that?”

Sonia wailed distressfully.

“I-I… The devil in my heart… did tempt me to take Komaeda-kun up on his offer… H-He was very persuasive…” The Princess snapped her eyes open, dropping her clasped hands to a lower position. “B-But I did not take the knife! When… When I found it in that garbage can, my hands trembled too much as I held it! I-I did not want to kill **any** of you, my classmates! S-So… So I left the knife in there. I even buried it in paper towels, because I knew Komaeda-kun had told others about the knife! I-I thought it would… that it would make the rest of you think it had been dealt with, that your chance had slipped away! I prayed… and prayed, and prayed, and prayed that none of you would find it… I did…”

Hajime frowned as a certain phrase in that testimony stuck out to him.

_‘Buried…? Didn’t that phrasing come up before, somewhere…?’_ His brow furrowed as he tried thinking back to everything they’d discussed until now.

Someone definitely brought up the word ‘buried’ before… He didn’t know if it would be a hint to the real killer, but for all their sakes, he needed to remember.

“Nevermind…” Chisa’s voice sounded so broken at hearing the blonde pour out her heart. Wasn’t there any way to prove Sonia couldn’t have killed Owari?

Byakuya had his eyes closed for several long moments before he opened them again and stared intensely at the Princess.

“… I’ll believe you, Nevermind.”

Hiyoko tilted her head jeeringly at the Ultimate Scion.

“Huuuh…? You guys sure are tossing that word around a lot like it means a damn anymore! We ‘believe’ that fruitcake couldn’t have done it, we ‘believe’ Ham Hands-san couldn’t have done it, we ‘believe’ that spineless, gaudy coward over there couldn’t have done it, now we’re ‘believing’ that this suspicious bitch couldn’t have done it… Who’re you gonna finger, Pig Barf? Ohhh, I get it, ‘cause she had blood on her, she **must** have been near Owari when she was killed! Yeah, I see where you’re going with that…”

Byakuya pointed at the dancer authoritatively.

“We’ll discuss Tsumiki in a minute. Right now, I wish to reiterate something curious: When I put the night vision goggles on, I didn’t spot anyone wrapped up in a tablecloth. Save for Owari, Kuzuryu, Pekoyama, Ikusaba, and Teruteru, I saw everyone else I should have, right in that dining hall. And that includes Nevermind. She was towards the front table when I saw her, but she was towards the **wrong side** of it…”

Chisa blinked curiously at the heir.

“Hmm…? What do you mean, Togami-kun?”

Byakuya scoffed, as if what he was insinuating should have been clear enough.

“Owari was on the left side of that table, true? Well, when I looked around the room, I spotted Nevermind feeling around in the darkness like everyone else was. But she was toward the back of that front table and heading for the right side of it, ever so slightly. In other words, towards Hinata, Nanami, and Yukizome-sensei.” The heir raised an index finger to his temple again, astutely. “Komaeda was unaware I had night vision goggles. All of you were unaware of that, since I had elected to keep the contents of my duralumin case a secret. I **should** have seen the killer or a suspicious party at some point… yet I did not. Something extraordinary must have happened to have me miss it in plain sight… And I can think of only one incident that happened near me.”

Mukuro’s eyes widened in realization.

“The table collapsing after Tsumiki fell into it…”

Hiyoko’s lips curled in distaste before shaking her head firmly in denial.

“Even if the killer didn’t know about your dumb night vision goggles, they still knew about the fireworks! They would’ve known how suspicious they would have looked to everyone else, wrapped up in a cloth!” The dancer pointed heatedly at Sonia again. “Nevermind **knew** about the fireworks! That psychopath told everyone he talked to about that part!”

Sonia shook her head in return, feverishly.

“I-I assure you he surely did not!”

~*~

“… _So that’s why I’ve taken everything into account for you. Tonight, I’ve arranged for a blackout to happen – you’ll know when the air conditioner goes off that it’s **your** moment. Now, you might be thinking it will be difficult to kill someone when visibility is nil, but I took that into account, too! I’ll be your **shining light** so you can escape this island… I’ve prepared a knife in a trash can in the bathroom of that lodge, and tablecloth to shield yourself from the blood. If you use those… you’ll **definitely** make it out of this nightmare alive~! Everyone will be so focused on me that you’ll get away free and clear!”_

_Sonia was pale as Nagito just waved his hand casually after such a troubling explanation._

_“Wh-Why would you do such things?!” The princess demanded heatedly. “A human life is not meant to be treated so lightly…!”_

_Nagito crossed his arms and gave a smug grin._

_“I wholeheartedly agree. Monokuma’s price for our memories **is** steep… But think about it, Nevermind-san. **At least** two to three years are missing. I wonder what happened to Novoselic in all that time…? Has there been any civil unrest? What about your abduction, has **that** thrown your people into a panic? Even if you don’t care about the memories… don’t you at least want to alleviate their concerns…?”_

_Sonia shuddered at the rhetoric he was using. It… It all did make sense. And of course she wondered what had happened in her home country after all this time, it was always on her mind… Yet… and yet…_

_“Wh-Why are you telling me this…?” The princess whispered, feeling weak in the knees, and feeling oh-so-conflicted._

_Nagito’s face brightened even more… if that was even possible. It made Sonia queasy._

_“Don’t you already know, Nevermind-san? I want to see your Hope and everyone else’s Hopes **shine**! We can overcome this Despair, I know we will~!” The wheezy laughter that escaped him unsettled Sonia even more._

~*~

As Sonia recounted her own altercation with the luckster, Kazuichi nodded slowly, finding it pretty similar to what he was told.

“Hey, yeah… He never mentioned **fireworks**! Just some vague bullshit about light…”

Mikan clasped her hands together desperately as she wailed.

“B-But Komaeda-kun told me…!”

~*~

“… _So that’s why I’ve taken everything into account for you. Tonight, I’ve arranged for a blackout to happen – you’ll know when the air conditioner goes off that it’s **your** moment. Now, you might be thinking it will be difficult to kill someone when visibility is nil, but I took that into account, too! I prepped **fireworks** and stowed them in the office, three displays in total, so you have three chances to commit your murder. I’ve prepared a murder weapon in the bathroom of that lodge, and a way to shield yourself from the blood. If you use those… you’ll **definitely** make it out of this nightmare alive~! Everyone will be so focused on me that you’ll get away free and clear! If you don’t go through with it, well… I just might start the killings with the knife I’ve prepared for myself~!”_

~*~

The nurse sniffled loudly.

“I-I knew Komaeda-kun had fireworks… B-But I thought, with the one left in the drawer when I looked, I thought someone had stopped himmm…!” Mikan sobbed, rubbing at her eyes. “I-I didn’t even check the bathroom because of that! I-I didn’t even know there was a knife or tablecloth in there…! I-I-I’m sorrrrrrrryyyyyy…!”

Byakuya did a double-take after listening to both the Princess and Nurse’s explanations. He turned to Nagito rigidly.

“You… only gave them **partial** information…? Why? What compelled you to…?”

The luckster crossed his arms and smiled mysteriously.

“Hmm… I wonder. I don’t think now’s the time to address that, though. Who do **you** think the killer is, Togami-kun? Nevermind? Or Tsumiki?”

The heir’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“I would be inclined to think it’s Tsumiki… I’ve given my rationale on why I don’t think Nevermind’s the culprit. But Tsumiki had that fall… And I did not see Owari anywhere, not even on the floor.”

Hajime raised an index finger studiously.

“Hold on, Togami… I don’t think it could be her, either. Tsumiki said she fell because she hadn’t expected to step and slip on some kind of cloth under her feet...”

Chisa rubbed her chin speculatively.

“A tablecloth, maybe…? She made that one table collapse…”

Mahiru shook her head in disagreement.

“No way. Those tablecloths looked like a perfect size for those tables. Plus, if Tsumiki walked right into the table, wouldn’t her front be covered in food from falling forward?”

Chisa laughed sheepishly at the memory.

“Oh yeah… I had her change clothes while you guys were going to search for Owari. Her back was a total mess…”

“She fell **back** into the table…” Mukuro trailed off speculatively. She glanced towards Byakuya meaningfully. “Those tables were spread apart. If she felt a cloth under her feet, and she fell **backwards** …”

Byakuya clenched a fist uneasily.

“Tsumiki and the killer must have crossed paths… And the only one close to her at that time, aside from myself…”

Eyes slowly panned toward the Ultimate Traditional Dancer. Hiyoko scrunched up her face in annoyance.

“What are you idiots implying? Just ‘cause Pig Barf probably stumbled into me, suddenly **I’m** the killer?! The hell’s wrong with you?!”

Hajime frowned as he narrowed his eyes.

“… It’s not just that. I mean, you said Nevermind knew about the fireworks, too… But she hadn’t heard that part of Komaeda’s plan – only Tsumiki heard that.”

Hiyoko scoffed loudly at that point.

“Riiight… Just because I **assumed** the psychopath told everyone the same stuff, I’m automatically suspicious. Where’d all that ‘belief’ crap go, huh?”

“I **want** to believe you…” Hajime defended himself. “But you made that claim **after** Souda explained what Komaeda had relayed to him. You should’ve immediately known not everyone had heard about the fireworks.”

Hiyoko tensed at that rebuttal. She quivered in anger.

“It was just a stupid brain fart! Seriously, why are you so suspicious of me?!”

“… Because I remembered.” Hajime muttered as he rubbed his chin. “Way before Nevermind brought it up, you said…”

_“Never mind that! Did you ask your **slave** to hide that stuff, for you? She was on cleaning duty, wasn’t she?” The dancer hotly accused. “I’ll bet you buried it in the trash, since that’s what you seem to like calling yourself.”_

Hajime pointed towards Sonia emphatically.

“Remember what Nevermind said she did? She **buried** the knife under paper towels so others would be less likely to find it! Sure, you might have made a wild stab in the dark, but it’s weird how you **coincidentally** used the same term that turned out to be the knife’s eventual circumstances… Only Nevermind should have known about that.”

Sonia raised a hand to her mouth in shock.

“Now that you mention it… Shortly after I left my shame behind, I walked by Saionji in the hall, and she was heading toward the bathroom!”

Fuyuhiko snorted.

“That stuff’s suspicious, but didn’t she also call Nevermind out on the shit that Komaeda tempted her with? She seemed pretty eager about it, too, even though she hates Tsumiki’s guts.”

Hiyoko trembled more intensely.

“Just ‘cause you **morons** can’t see past that skank’s ‘woe is me’ act, doesn’t give you the right to look down on me, shit-for-brains! **I’m not the killer**!” Hiyoko screeched.

Mahiru’s eyes softened as she clutched at the strap to her camera bag, looking down morosely.

“Hey… Maybe this is a mistake, you guys? I mean… Saionji wasn’t approached by Komaeda. How could she have known what was going on?”

Mukuro narrowed her eyes critically at the dancer.

“It’s not just the testimonies and her behavior… Saionji’s height should be taken into consideration, too.”

“Her height?” Ibuki tilted her head curiously. “But Saionji-chan’s all dwarf-sized~! What’s weird about that?”

“If we assume Tsumiki really did slip on the tablecloth the culprit was wearing, who do you think is more likely to have excess cloth dragging on the floor? Nevermind? Or Saionji?” Mukuro helpfully explained. “They both would possibly have excess cloth, but Saionji’s would be more abundant and pool around her feet more. She’s too small.”

Peko hummed thoughtfully.

“I agree with that assessment… Owari herself must have stepped in it too, if she moved around at all, in reaction to being stabbed…”

Mukuro nodded confidently.

“I checked out the cloth – while it’s clear where the blood mainly erupted onto the cloth, there were splotches closer toward some edges of the cloth, which would further explain why there were bloodstains on the floor, under the scattered food. Owari definitely struggled with her killer, even if it was only a little bit. One stain in particular appeared to be smeared like paint across the cloth.”

“Smeared?” Nekomaru cocked his head, hands on his hips.

“From when Tsumiki fell…” Hajime recalled. “There was a bit of blood smeared on the lower part of Tsumiki’s leg. It’s not a cut or an injury, she definitely got that from falling on top of one of those bloodstains.”

Byakuya scowled as he kept his fist curled in frustration.

“Saionji **did** have a cloth partially draped over her, when I saw her on the floor during the blackout. I didn’t think much at the time because that was in the aftermath of the table collapsing, and she and Tsumiki were close together… However. If the cloth wrapped around her got undone when Tsumiki slipped…” The heir trailed off for a moment before gritting his teeth. “Damnit. How did I not see that was a second cloth? Of course Tsumiki was lying on top of the collapsed table… Then I had to be distracted by Komaeda…”

Ibuki made a shocked, horrified expression.

“Ehhh?! So when Saionji-chan fell down, that’s what Ibuki was hearing? Ibuki thought Saionji-chan was just being a klutz…!”

“I am **not** a klutz, thank you very much!” Hiyoko raged. “The shit with Pig Barf was just an **accident**! I dare any of you to not get wrapped up in her perverted falling crap when you’re in the dark with her!”

Byakuya gnawed at his fingernails, ignoring the dancer’s mounting frustration.

“… It makes sense. Saionji’s position was just as close to Owari as Tsumiki’s position was… Mioda! What were the sequences of noises you heard around that time, again?”

Ibuki saluted eccentrically before reciting her testimony from Owari’s last spoken words.

~*~

_“Somebody turn the damn lights on!” Akane barked. “I can’t eat like this, you know?!”_

_“Is this **really** the time for that?!” Mahiru cried out in disbelief. Ibuki thought she might’ve heard some other sounds, too, but everybody was kinda panic-y at the time._

_“Wah! Don’t step on my feet!” Hiyoko whined gruffly, bumping into a table._

_“WAAAAAAH!” Mikan wailed, making a big crashing sound as she tumbled over a table in the dark. Kinda sounded like the table was all sorts of broken, too…_

_“SHIIIIIITTTTT!!!” Nekomaru bellowed._

_“What in the nine Hells is this madness?!” Gundham yelled out._

_“I **said** watch where you’re **going** …!” The dancer grunted with exerted effort. Kinda sounded like she might have been in the middle of standing back up. Was Saionji-chan goofing off like Tsumiki-chan?_

~*~

“… Stop there.” Byakuya commanded the musician. “Mioda, could you explain what those ‘other noises’ were, around the time Koizumi was speaking?”

Ibuki rubbed the back of her head, making a sort of nervous and bemused expression.

“Uh… Ehehe… Ibuki never elaborated on that part, ‘cause I didn’t hear anything like it for the rest of the blackout…” She then perked up. “At least until Ibuki heard Byakuya-chan duking it out with Komaeda-chan! It **kinda** sounded like those noises, like the heavy breathing and struggle-y noises? Just… maybe a little different?”

“Different **how**?” Byakuya impatiently prompted her. “If more than one person was involved, could you identify them?”

Ibuki rapidly shook her head.

“Nope! Way too intense for Ibuki to identify… But Ibuki could tell they were kinda close by~!”

Chisa crossed her arms, closing them in thought.

“That was when the murder happened, wasn’t it…? I mean, Mioda also heard the rustling of cloth sometime after that…”

Ibuki giggled mischievously.

“Those rustle-y noises were in the same area as the struggle-y noises~! Ibuki remembers that because she heard more rustling later at Ibuki’s table!”

“The table at the front of the dining hall…” Peko murmured, remembering the diagram Mahiru shared with them, showing everyone’s locations. “That must have been when the body was concealed. But when did you hear the rustling at your table?”

Ibuki hummed, deep in thought.

“… Right around the time Byakuya-chan and Komaeda-chan were wrestling?”

Byakuya pinched the bridge of his nose.

“You didn’t mention that earlier…?”

“Ibuki was focused on cheering for Byakuya-chan!”

“I didn’t hear cheering of any sort.” The heir deadpanned.

“… Ibuki was cheering on the inside.” She stage whispered, earning a round of groans.

Fuyuhiko crossed his arms, scowling.

“Hold on. If Owari was shoved under the table **after** Togami ran off to have his beef with that psychotic fuck, how the hell did he miss Owari’s body?”

Byakuya frowned in frustration.

“… The area around Tsumiki and Saionji was a disaster area. There’s a reason I elected to go around Koizumi’s side of the table – the other way looked too unpredictable, with everything strewn about. That cloth partially draped over Saionji really should have struck me as odd, and I curse my inattentiveness. The first set of rustling noises Mioda heard may have been when Saionji was shifting around on the floor – and at some point, Owari’s body must have been covered up. If I had taken a better look at the floor and the cloth… maybe then…”

Hiyoko finally exploded caustically.

“Would you bastards back the fuck up?! You’ve just been spewing whatever springs to mind for the longest time without any **proof**!” The blonde hissed acidly. “Using my height as evidence…? **Really**? Why would I even kill Owari in the first damn place?! She was annoying, but so are all of **you** …!”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“You **were** in a pretty huge rush to get out of there after the fire broke out…” He mumbled. Though he knew that wasn’t any more conclusive than all the previous circumstantial evidence. They needed something more concrete…

Then Mahiru spoke up carefully.

“Hey… Didn’t Owari have a strip of white cloth under her fingernails…? Did we ever get an answer for that?”

Mukuro shook her head negatively.

“Nope. None of the tablecloths had tears in them. We can only assume the killer’s own clothes got ripped, somewhere. Though no one has stuck out…”

Mahiru seemed to brighten at this turn of events.

“Then Saionji can’t be the killer! She’s got an orange kimono, right?”

Hiyoko sneered.

“See?! Didn’t I say?!” She glared at the odd look Hajime was shooting her, his brow furrowed. “Got something to say? Huh?! It’s like Koizumi said, my kimono’s **orange**! Pig Barf probably murdered Owari, tripped over me like the walking disaster she is, then later changed her clothes! You can’t **prove** Pig Barf’s innocent ‘til we’ve checked her clothes! And guess what we don’t have right now?”

Chisa scratched her cheek sheepishly, turning towards Monomi apologetically.

“Um, Monomi…? Could you be a dear and go retrieve the clothes Tsumiki changed out of…? We need to check something.”

“Umm…” Monomi trailed off uncertainly. Her gaze then turned towards the floor, where they saw Monokuma… being a weirdo.

“Mmm~! Yummy~!” The bear giggled in delight as he licked the food splattered on the back of Tsumiki’s clothes. “Is this what they call functional clothing? Stuff you can wear, but stuff you can eat~? I-I’ve never seen anything like it! The taste reminds me of my days in the wild…”

Kazuichi pointed at Monokuma accusingly.

“Hey, hey, hand those over! They’re important evidence!”

After the bear slurped up some more of the food for good measure, Chisa reluctantly accepted them and turned them over for all to see.

… No tears.

Hiyoko deflated a little at the visual confirmation.

“… D-Damnit… Well, the cloth can’t be mine! It’s **white**!”

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously.

“S-Saionji…?”

“ **What**?!” The dancer bellowed.

The brunet dreaded what he was about to say. He didn’t want to doubt Saionji, he really didn’t…

But…

“Y-You’ve got inner sleeves to your kimono…” He licked his lips carefully. “… And they’re white.”

A heavy silence fell over the group as this sank in. Eventually, Hiyoko managed to splutter out a defense.

“Y… Yeah?! S-So what?!”

Hajime clenched a fist over his heart in anguish.

“Would you please show us those sleeves…? I don’t want to believe it. But this is how we can determine your innocence or guilt. If… If there’s nothing amiss, then… then we’re off-track. But if there’s even a small tear…”

Hiyoko’s face became red in barely concealed outrage.

“ **I don’t have to show you pedos anything**! B-Back off!”

But it was too late. Mukuro had made her way over there, shortly after Hajime had made the observation of the sleeves. She held the dancer in place, and yanked the inner sleeves out in the open to get a better look at them.

While the left sleeve was clean… The right sleeve had a clear tear in it.

… The silence became suffocating after that. No one moved to call for Voting Time, though they knew it was inevitable at this stage. As Monokuma instructed them to cast their votes, and the results were processed, they all waited with bated breath.

And then the slot machine determining the results stopped spinning. All three faces showed Hiyoko Saionji’s head. A positive match. A correct verdict.

**Guilty**.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I'm late to the party this weekend with the update. If you couldn't tell, it was another monumental chapter, and I didn't even reach the execution yet, just the verdict.
> 
> To make up for the tardiness, I think I'll try to get the post-trial content posted as soon as possible - no promises, because work can hold me up. If push comes to shove, I'll try to do post-trial content along with what I was *meant* to get to this upcoming weekend, which is the "Future Side" chapter. I'll just hafta see how the writing goes. 
> 
> But! I hope you enjoyed the trial, and that the clues and leads were believable, the logic easy to follow. As one of you has said, I've put this New Game Plus on "Hard Mode". XD
> 
> No tricks or gimmicks~ My magic is the real deal. :3 
> 
> One clarification, as I figure some of you might bring this up: The trash can being empty when Peko examined it. I realize I should have made that point clear, but I meant "empty" in the sense there hadn't been anything else worthy of note, from Peko's perspective. Rifling through a bunch of paper towels with nothing on them... Peko wouldn't deem that super-important. Again, my b, though.


	11. Chapter 1, Part 8: Destination Despair

“Let’s try going over the whole incident, beginning with right after the **party** started…” Hajime began the closing argument at Byakuya’s request. “Togami had us gather in the **dining hall** of the old building near the hotel. He was extra cautious about a murder occurring that night because of a threatening letter he received. Therefore, he decided to throw a party to monitor us; he even roped Yukizome-sensei into helping him. With some behind-the-scenes goading, we all assembled at the dining hall… and the party was underway.

Hajime continued the closing argument.

“But, at the time, the trap set by a certain someone was already in motion. They had Ikusaba plug three irons into the outlets in the storage room, which nearly capped the power usage… Additionally, they prepared something else that would activate at 11:30pm… The air conditioners in the office and dining hall. They set the timers for these. Thanks to the irons maxing out the power usage, the breaker was tripped when the air conditioners kicked on. Since the windows in the old building were covered, the blackout plunged the dining hall into total darkness. This darkness was quickly broken up by two volleys of fireworks that Komaeda set off to assist the killer in navigating the darkness. The blackout was a **signal** for the killer to get ‘suited up’ in the tablecloth and have the knife ready to go, items that they acquired from the bathroom, which Komaeda used as a smuggling route to get past potential body-checks. Once the first firework went off, the killer had to make use of the silhouettes they saw in the brief flash of light to navigate to their designated target. However, just about anyone would have trouble adapting to a sudden burst of light right on the first try; that’s why Komaeda had prepared at least two shots to aid the killer on their way.

“Once the second shot had gone off, the killer would have been more confident in their position relative to their target’s back. With only Komaeda’s word that there would be three ‘displays’, the killer took the plunge and began their desperate attack. There was no going back, so they stabbed Owari numerous times due to the zero visibility; they had to be **absolutely sure** their target would die. Of course, Owari struggled against the killer’s assault; and unbeknownst to the killer, Owari had torn off a bit of their clothes in their rush to finish the job. But in the end… the killer succeeded, and Owari died…

“Around this time, Tsumiki was about to throw another wrench in the killer’s plans. She slipped on the tablecloth that the killer was wearing, most likely around the time that the killer was bending over to move the body, and that fall brought down both Tsumiki and the killer, as well as the table she fell back into. When that happened, Togami took out a specific item that he brought in his case. That item… was the **night-vision goggles**. Togami was so concerned about a murder occurring that he brought a variety of security equipment with him. When he put on his night-vision goggles, he saw Tsumiki and the killer collapsed on the floor – the tablecloth wrapped around the killer was undone, and it unwittingly obscured Owari’s body from Togami’s sight. But Togami wasn’t given the time to examine the scene in more detail; Komaeda, who had lit a third match, was preparing to launch the last firework. Wasting no time, Togami charted the fastest, most stable way over to Komaeda, and hurried so he could to put a stop to Komaeda’s plans. It was a close thing, but… in the end, Komaeda managed to unleash that third display.

“While Togami struggled to apprehend Komaeda, the killer used the light of the third firework to regain their bearings and get Owari under the table near the front of the dining hall. They stowed the blood-soaked cloth there, too, no doubt being as careful as they could to not let any of it get on them. But they wouldn’t have time to rest yet – due to the fireworks displays, a fire broke out at the far end of the dining hall, and Togami urged everyone to evacuate to safety. We all followed his instructions, and it was a mad rush out of that room, everyone pushing and shoving. Eventually, our ruckus attracted Pekoyama and Kuzuryu’s attention, and they joined us in the evacuation. Back in the dining hall, Togami and Yukizome-sensei helped Tsumiki regain her bearings, and they along with Komaeda were the last ones to make it out of the old building. We all thought we made it out of there in one piece… But it was far too late. We only discovered Owari after Monokuma and Monomi put out the fire.

“Hiyoko Saionji…” Hajime stroked his chin thoughtfully. “If it wasn’t for that torn sleeve, and your knowledge of Komaeda’s initial targets, you might’ve gotten away with it… But I’m sorry. The killer can be none other than you…! How about it? Did I get anything wrong?”

Hiyoko, who was trembling both furiously and with tears pricking at her eyes, twitched her hands waspishly.

“Th… This is a mistake, I’m telling you…! I-I had **no reason** … You don’t have **proof** I overheard… that piece of shit…” The dancer screamed in anguish. ” **Owari wasn’t supposed to die**! Why the hell was it her?! Why do you guys have to be such idiots…? WAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!”

Byakuya heaved a heavy, reluctant sigh, arms crossed.

“It seems… this is the end.”

Nagito massaged his brow in disappointment.

“How unfortunate… So this is as far as your Hope went. I had a hunch… My one regret is my luck couldn’t play into your favor more! It obviously hid Owari’s body until you could get clear… But it still failed you in several crucial areas. I can’t help but admire the initiative you took~! The setup was almost **perfect** …”

“Just be **quiet** …!” Mahiru bellowed, pointing at the luckster accusingly. “It’s your fault… things turned out like this!”

Chisa’s face fell as she watched the dancer wail and sob at the unfairness of it all. It really shouldn’t have turned out like this at all…

“Saionji…” The orange-haired woman murmured softly.

Unsurprisingly, Voting Time commenced shortly after… It wasn’t unanimous. There was one holdout for accusing Saionji… And it surprisingly didn’t come from the girl herself.

~*~

“Correct~!” Monokuma bounced up and down a little, once the slot machine stopped spewing out coins. “That’s right! This time, the Blackened responsible for killing Akane Owari is Hiyoko Saionji!”

The Ultimate Traditional Dancer shrank back from the looks she was receiving from everyone, the color drained completely from her face.

“Th… This is… s-some kind of… mistake…” She mumbled to herself, eyes darting around cautiously.

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched in disbelief as he gritted his teeth.

“A-Are you serious…? Out of all these people… Are you saying this brat is the one who killed Owari?”

Hiyoko hissed at the jab.

“Who’re you calling a brat, Ultimate Babyface?!”

“What’d you say, you little **bitch**?!” The yakuza bellowed right back at her, making the dancer shrink back more.

“B-But…” Nekomaru mumbled before he broke out sobbing, loudly. “WHYYYYYY?! WHY DID YOU KILL HER?!?!”

Hiyoko stared down, biting down hard on her lower lip.

“I-I told you… It was a mistake! Owari was an idiot, but I didn’t want **her** dead!” The blonde whirled on Mikan, glaring venomously at her. “It’s because of **you** …! Why can’t you just come clean already, you pig-faced troll?! I **heard** you and that psycho! I **saw** that damn face you made! **Just admit it already**!”

As the blonde screeched at the top of her lungs, Mikan recoiled, covering her face with her arms.

“Wh-Wh-Why do you always have to be so mean, Saionji…? I-I never wanted to kill anyone…!” The nurse wailed mournfully.

Hiyoko snarled in frustration.

“Like **hell** you didn’t! Then what the fuck was that face you made?!”

“What face?” Kazuichi asked, scratching the side of his head, perplexed.

Hiyoko huffed exasperatedly, hands balled into fists at her side.

“I **saw** **everything** , I’m telling you…!”

~*~

_“Wh-What is it…?” Mikan couldn’t help asking the luckster as he approached her in the supermarket._

_“I just wanted to ask what **your** thoughts were on the whole ‘memories’ ordeal…” Nagito smiled innocently as he crossed his arms._

_Mikan poked her fingers together nervously._

_“W-Well… M-Memory loss is possible… There are w-ways to pull it off…”_

_Nagito shook his head slowly._

_“Uh-oh, that’s not what I meant~… I mean, what are your thoughts on killing someone to get those memories back for everyone…? After all, Monokuma said it’s just **one** murder, that’s all he wants. And that’s why I’ve given you guys the **perfect** setup for it!_

_Mikan wailed, clutching at her head as the luckster continued so casually. Hiyoko, who overheard the deranged laughter and the loud wailing from a few aisles over, got closer so she could see the two and observe them more closely. The way she was positioned, the aisle was hiding her from view, but consequentially, she mostly saw Komaeda’s backside – well, she really wanted to see Tsumiki’s reactions anyway, so it didn’t matter to her if she couldn’t see the psychotic faces Komaeda was making._

“… _So that’s why I’ve taken everything into account for you. Tonight, I’ve arranged for a blackout to happen – you’ll know when the air conditioner goes off that it’s **your** moment. Now, you might be thinking it will be difficult to kill someone when visibility is nil, but I took that into account, too! I prepped **fireworks** and stowed them in the office, three displays in total, so you have three chances to commit your murder. I’ve prepared a murder weapon in the bathroom of that lodge, and a way to shield yourself from the blood. If you use those… you’ll **definitely** make it out of this nightmare alive~! Everyone will be so focused on me that you’ll get away free and clear! If you don’t go through with it, well… I just might start the killings with the knife I’ve prepared for myself~!”_

_Mikan shook her head rapidly, tears streaming from her face as she stared in shock at the luckster._

_“Wh-Wh-Wh-Why would you do something so cruel…?! D-Do you hate us all that much…?”_

_Nagito tilted his head curiously, spreading out his arms affectionately._

_“Hate you? Not at all~! I love everyone here. That’s why I want to be good use of them. I love all of the **Ultimates** … and I admire them being **symbols of Hope**!” Nagito hugged himself. “That’s right… In the name of **Hope** , I love everyone’s talent from the bottom of my heart. I want them to prove to me that **Hope** will never lose, no matter how daunting the **Despair** they face may seem. I want everyone to prove to me, ‘ **Hope will never lose to Despair**!’ I want to make your Hopes shine… It’s as simple as that…”_

_The nurse shivered fearfully, and even Hiyoko was feeling uncomfortable from where she was watching this shitshow._

_“Y-You’re… You’re sick, Komaeda-kun… L-Let me help you… Please…” Mikan clasped her hands together, pleading desperately with him._

_Nagito just gave a raspy laugh._

_“Oh, don’t worry, Tsumiki-san, I’m **quite** alright! There’s nothing ‘wrong’ with me… I’m just an obsessed fanboy. The Ultimate **Ultimate** fanatic, if you will. That’s why it’s okay! If my love is unrequited, I don’t mind.” He spread out his arms again affectionately. “This is what **love** is! A gift from me to you~!”_

_Mikan froze at these words, her mouth clamping shut as her eyes glossed over. Her expression was perfectly blank. And all the while, Nagito just kept laughing…_

~*~

Hiyoko sniffled furiously, still glaring daggers at Mikan. Everyone else had fallen silent in disbelief, but their attention was more on the luckster, rather than the nurse, who was still pulling away from Hiyoko in fright.

“Y-You can say all the b-bullshit you want… I-I saw that damn face! Those eyes were so empty, it was creepy! Why **wouldn’t** I think you were some psycho killer under all that stupid sobbing?! You’re just a fucking faker that’s trying to get everyone to drop their guard!”

“Th-That was…” Mikan waved her hands defensively in front of herself. “I-I-I wasn’t thinking of killing, Saionji…! K-Komaeda-kun s-said…”

“I don’t give a rat’s ass about what that freak said!” Hiyoko snapped waspishly, pointing heatedly at the nurse. “You’re as crazy as he is! Maybe you’ve got everyone else wrapped around your finger, but not me! I see through your shit!”

Mahiru held out a hand to the dancer’s shoulder to try and calm her down.

“S-Saionji… wait…”

“Though I guess you’re not the **only** one who’s gone mental.” Hiyoko growled, speaking over the photographer fiercely. She whirled on Sonia next, jabbing an accusing finger at the Princess. “ **You** got to the knife before I did, but you ‘chickened out’ or some shit! The hell were you even spewing with that whole ‘whispering devil in your heart’ crap?! If you’re gonna lie, at least tell a believable one! **You** were gonna murder someone to get back to your country, so **you’re** guiltier than I am!”

Ibuki rubbed the side of her head in confusion.

“How does **that** work? Nevermind-chan just almost-killed somebody.” She chuckled nervously as she got reproached by Gundham and Kazuichi.

Hiyoko snarled.

“Are you fucking **serious**?! What’s worse? Killing people you don’t know for even more people you don’t know, or killing for someone you give a shit about?!” The dancer stomped her foot impetuously. “’Cause that’s what she was gonna do, shit-for-brains! She was gonna sacrifice all of you for a shit ton of more people that she never even met! Just people she’s ‘supposed’ to rule over or whatever.”

Sonia paled and shrank in on herself, face anxiously looking down at the floor in shame. Chisa, face ghastly pale, also reached out for Hiyoko comfortingly.

“That’s still no excuse for killing, Saionji! If you’d just told us what you’d seen, then…”

Hiyoko screamed bloody murder.

“ **How the hell do I trust you shitstains**?! Who do I know I can trust? Pig Barf and Princess Bitch are disasters waiting to happen! **No one else** reported that psychopath! Ikusaba’s his damn lapdog. Togami likes pretending he knows what’s going on, but shit still gets by him! The rest of you could snap my neck like a twig!” The blonde sobbed emotionally, taking a little satisfaction in pissing Mukuro off, and making Sonia, Mikan, and Byakuya avert their gazes in shame. The heir placed a hand on the railing to his witness stand, gripping it in frustration. Everyone else looked vaguely uncomfortable, and Hiyoko seemed to take pride in that.

“You could’ve told me…” Mahiru tried calming the dancer down, but the blonde wasn’t having that.

“Koizumi, you’re really kind. The nicest person here…” Hiyoko gritted her teeth, looking down and clenching her fists in aggravation. “… But you wouldn’t have been able to do anything. The rest of these shits had their heads up their asses and were too stupid to listen to you… Th-That’s why I never said anything. Out of everyone here, **you** didn’t deserve to be bothered by all this **bullshit**. I-I… I wanted to just… expose Pig Barf for the liar she was. Maybe frame Princess Bitch for the murder, if it happened. It was supposed to be simple. But that bastard bear… said everyone else died **if** I got off the hook… How’s that even fair, telling us the rules **after** the shitty game’s started?!”

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Rules are never explained early, nor are they ever late~! They are revealed precisely when I want them to be! Upupupu~!”

Chisa wilted even further… if that was possible.

“S-Saionji… you should have told me. You were supposed to tell me…!”

Hiyoko averted her gaze slightly at the broken voice that got under even her skin. She spluttered just a little.

“I-I dunno **how** I was supposed to do that when you were holed up in that lodge all day… By the time the party started, the killer coulda swiped the knife already! It’s not **my** fault! You said you would be there when we needed you, s-so why… why weren’t you?!” The blonde sniffled emotionally. Chisa hung her head miserably.

Hajime clenched a fist in frustration. Hiyoko was deflecting all the blame, and while he couldn’t agree with that completely, he did understand her position. She was dealt an awful hand. They all were. He turned to the luckster heatedly.

“Komaeda… What the hell were you thinking, talking to everyone like this? What’s the meaning of this?”

Nagito held up his hands peacefully and chuckled nervously. 

“You see, if you have a favorite boxer, don’t you want him to fight against a strong opponent and win?”

“You better not compare us to that!” Fuyuhiko raged, eyes hard as he glared at the luckster. Nagito blinked slowly, looking to the yakuza in confusion.

“Huh? Am I wrong? It’s a given that trials are necessary to become strong, and the harsher the trial, the stronger you become, no?” He waved a hand casually, passing it off with another sheepish laugh. “For mere humans, killings are simply a tragedy, but… for worthy humans, a trial such as this can elevate their status to an even higher level. It’s amazing to me that someone as untalented as myself can become that trial! There’s no point in someone like me surviving… It’s far more significant for me to die as everyone’s trial. There’s no greater honor than becoming the foundation so that your values may ascend to brave new heights.”

Kazuichi tugged his beanie over his head, tears streaming down his face.

“S-Stop it… You’re seriously… starting to piss me off…”

Mahiru fumed, glaring at Nagito.

“I-I don’t understand at all! Are you saying you basically wanted to commit murder for fun?!”

Nagito shrugged dismissively.

“It’s not the same as someone killing for fun, but… I guess it’d look the same in your eyes. I have no intention of surviving and leaving you all to die.”

Byakuya’s eyes hardened as he raised his head to glare at Nagito as well.

“Is that why you told Nevermind, Tsumiki, and Souda, yet you don’t mind that Saionji overheard you?”

“Or perhaps that was intentional…” Chiaki mused. Hiyoko appeared startled at that.

“Wh-What…?”  
“Komaeda wanted to involve us in the killing… Plus, it’d be better for him if the mystery was more complex. Is that why you only gave **partial** information to each of your initial targets? You wanted to know which of them would commit the murder, but if someone eavesdropped multiple times, you wanted to be able to realize that, too?”

Nagito smiled mysteriously, crossing his arms.

“Well… you’re basically right. It’s true, I was looking forward to the mystery being more complex. And it’s also true that by controlling the spread of information, I knew the killer would give themselves away by knowing too much. It was ultimately my way of making this a fair trial for everybody! You guys would have a vital hint… and I would be able to assist the killer in covering their tracks~!” He laughed lightly as several stared at him incredulously and in disbelief.

Kazuichi smacked his forehead and shivered in dread.

“This dude… he’s seriously batshit crazy! He’s insane!”

Hiyoko shuddered as well.

“Maybe I shoulda aimed for you, instead… Guh! You’re creepy to the max!”

Nekomaru grunted in frustration before turning to the dancer again, hands on his hips.

“You still haven’t explained yourself. Why? Why did you kill Owari?”

“I told you, **it was a mistake**!” Hiyoko grunted, hands behind her back as she looked off to the side with a scowl. “Moving around in that darkness was confusing as hell… I musta mixed up my directions, ‘cause when I first saw Tsumiki’s silhouette, she was toward my right. Then, when I moved and tried to aim for her back, I just… went for the person on my right again. Their silhouettes were **kinda** similar… I knew I messed up when Owari started talking, but it was too late – I already went for the stabbing… Then Pig Barf did her dumbass erotic falling routine… and took me down with her, the slut.”

“ **That’s** uncalled for!” Mahiru reproached the dancer, who thinned her lips and looked to the side with a humph. “I’m telling you, Saionji, you’re wrong about Tsumiki! She… She didn’t tell me everything, but she told me enough that I got the gist! Komaeda said **a lot** of things that were uncalled for. I… I didn’t want to make ruin the party, so… So I tried cheering everyone up by taking pictures.”

Kazuichi looked at the photographer strangely.

“You knew Komaeda was plotting a murder, so you said nothing and just tried to keep the party going???”

Mahiru huffed exasperatedly, hands on her hips.

“No! Like I said, I just got the **gist**. I knew Komaeda was bullying Tsumiki… And based off how anxious Saionji had been, I knew something was up! I didn’t think it’d come to **murder**. Wh-When… When the murder happened, I really hoped Tsumiki hadn’t killed Owari, mistaking her for Komaeda… I’m glad she didn’t, but…” She clutched the strap of her camera bag emotionally. “If I’d just hung around Saionji more. I **know** I could have stopped the murder… I’m such an idiot…”

Byakuya crossed his arms, scowling.

“You’re not the one at fault, Koizumi… And neither is Saionji. Or even Komaeda. This. All of this is on **my** head… If I’d just done one last sweep of the lodge before the party. If I’d **just** done that…” The heir clenched a fist and looked down in aggravation.

Nagito gave a raspy laugh.

“I never expected an ending like this… Such Despair! We shouldn’t let Owari die in vain, you know… I’m sure everyone will become stronger by overcoming this Despair… Honestly, I just took some precautionary measures so I could be prepared for however it turned out, but I never expected it to turn out like this. In the end, I failed to realize Saionji was the killer until it was too late for me to offer up any real help. I’m really so pitiful…”

Hajime’s brow furrowed and he narrowed his eyes.

“Why… would you try to help Saionji…?”

Nagito shrugged casually.

“Well, because… Saionji decided to commit her crime because she also had **strong Hope** , right? Which means her actions were motivated by **Hope** … If she was willing to go that far, I thought she might truly be the person whose existence I’d been waiting for. I thought she might be the **Hope that could defeat any type of Despair**. In order for me to confirm it, I really did want to help Saionji… Alas, I’m so slow-witted~…”

Hajime spluttered.

“What do you mean ‘confirm’?! Just… Just stop it already…!”

“But this trial was easier than it could have been, don’t you think? If I’d realized Saionji was the killer during the investigation, I could have given her pointers about what to avoid saying! After all, much of this victory is due to her poor, confused, and frustrated state…” Nagito sighed morosely, gazing down at his hand. “Still, maybe I’m too arrogant here… Perhaps Saionji was always destined for a terrible ending like this. But you should be proud of yourself, Saionji! You will not die in vain. You will become a splendid sacrifice for everyone else so their Hopes can grow even more powerful~!”

“ **Sacrifice**?!” Hiyoko bellowed. “Like **hell** I’m sacrificing myself for a shitstain like you…!”

Kazuichi shook his fist furiously at the luckster.

“Seriously, stop it already! I’m gonna go crazy just listening to you!”

Fuyuhiko stuffed his hands in his pockets, scowling.

“Hey, is it really okay for us to just leave this crazy bastard alone like this? Isn’t it better if we just fucking kill him off?!”

Mukuro defensively stepped between the yakuza and the luckster, glaring fiercely at the blond.

“You will **not** lay a finger on him…!”

Peko thinned her lips and glared back at Mukuro warningly.

“Ikusaba… Think about what Komaeda hopes to achieve. **If** he deems a killer to be this deity of ‘Hope’ that he seeks, that means he sacrifices **everyone** – including you and even himself – so that killer can live. Are you satisfied laying down your life for such a cause?”

Mukuro’s eyes widened in shock, like she’d been slapped in the face. She recoiled and took a step back.

“Th-That’s… That’s not… I’m not important…” The soldier spluttered excuses.

Peko closed her eyes, sighing patiently.

“Komaeda has betrayed you in the worst way possible. You have to ask yourself, Ikusaba – who do you serve? Komaeda? Or his cause? You cannot serve both.”

Mukuro’s discomfort multiplied, and she looked to Nagito imploringly, yet the luckster only waved casually at her and chuckled warmly.

“Ikusaba, I said it from the beginning! I’m not important. What you should do is strive for the Hope that **you** believe in. That’s all any of us can do~…”

Mukuro went quiet at that, looking down miserably. This was… ludicrously unfair. And Komaeda-kun wasn’t even remorseful… What… What was she supposed to do?

“Sooo… Can we just kill him, too, and be done with him?!” Fuyuhiko said, taking a step forward challengingly. For once, Mukuro flinched back, unable to meet the challenge head-on.

**She didn’t know what to do**.

Monokuma giggled, paws over his mouth.

“Kyaaah~! ‘Kill,’ he said! High school students are sooo violent these days~! But the person who’s gonna get killed now isn’t Komaeda. It’s Saionji.”

Hiyoko reeled back with a haunted look.

“Wh-What?!”

“Upupu, you didn’t forget, right? Cuz I told you already at the beginning, right? If the Blackened killer loses… a fun **Punishment** awaits them.”

“Th-That’s…!” The blonde shrank in on herself even more, tears pricking at her eyes. “That’s not fair! It was an accident! It was… self-defense…! It wasn’t **intentional** …! **It’s not my fault**!”

Monokuma raised his paws angrily.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s an accident, self-defense, or intentional, a murder is still a murder! If you kill someone, that’s murder!”

Hiyoko quivered in rage and frustration, herself.

“Isn’t there sympathy judgements or extenuating circumstances?! Take Pig Barf or Princess Bitch if you don’t wanna execute that psychopath! They’re way worse people than I am!”

“I don’t accept any of those claims!” Monokuma denied.

Hiyoko whirled on her class furiously.

“S-S-Somebody **say** something! You don’t think I **deserve** to be executed, do you?! **It’s not my fault**!”

Monokuma snickered, showing off his devious side again.

“Be honest… After learning about Komaeda’s plan, you saw an opportunity, right? You probably thought nobody would find out if you killed shady Tsumiki, ‘cause Komaeda talked to Nevermind and Kazuichi and Kuzuryu, right~? That’s what you thought, right?”

Hiyoko stuttered out excuses.

“Th-That is… w-well…”

“There’s no way a person who has no malice… would kill someone like that.” Monokuma patted his belly contently. Hiyoko groaned in frustration. “In truth, you were just desperate to kill Tsumiki… and willing to sacrifice everyone else to survive, right? Just be honest already… at least, in the end.”

Hiyoko sniffed loudly before letting loose another mournful wail.

“S-Saionji…” Mahiru murmured, hand over her heart in anguish.

“If you didn’t try to kill Tsumiki… Owari would still be alive!” Nekomaru wailed alongside the dancer. “Why did you have to do this, Saionji?!”

Hiyoko sobbed.

“I… I doubted Tsumiki, it’s t-true… I-I still think she’s a lying w-witch! B-But…” The blonde bowed her head, face adopting a solemn expression. “But if she was telling the truth… then… me killing her would be a mercy, wouldn’t it…? Sh-She wouldn’t deserve to be in this shitty place… if she was **really** as kind as she claimed to be… S-So… So I wanted to s-see one way or the other! A-And… And I wanted to go home…”

“Home?” Hajime echoed, hand clenched over his heart, too, watching the dancer studiously. Hiyoko nodded miserably.

“My dad’s waiting for me… I-I couldn’t die here… My dad… is the only person that makes my shitty life worth it…! H-He’s as kind as Koizumi and Sensei… And… And I hated leaving him alone for all this time, even if my mom and grandma were raising me to be the ‘elite’ that I am… Dad… never cared about that stuff, and just wanted me happy… **I had to return home no matter what**! H-He’s treated like an outcast at home… I almost never get to see him… And then Monokuma said our memories were stolen… and that several years have passed since our first day. I… I had to find out what happened to him! Is he still okay?! D-Does he still… love me…? Or does he hate me ‘cause I was away for all these years…? **I had to know**!”

Peko clenched her teeth, bowing her head in anguish.

“So you did believe Monokuma…”

“How the hell were we supposed to know what you felt, with you bullying us all the time?!” Kazuichi raged.

Sonia clasped her hands together pleadingly.

“S-Saionji, you always did seem to have a confidence, misplaced or not… Wh-Why are you so insecure…? W-We would never have hurt you!”

Hiyoko snarled.

“And I can’t **trust that** , especially from you!” She pointed at Sonia accusingly. “You guys have **no idea** what it’s like to constantly be on your guard! My family’s had loads of assassinations, and my mom and grandma taught me you **have** to doubt people, no matter what, or it can get you **killed**! I-I… I have to be **so careful** , day in and day out… The **only people** I think that are worth trusting are my dad, Koizumi, and Sensei… I-I don’t know **what** to think of the rest of you! B-But… But I guess… I didn’t want you guys **dead** … I just… had to go home, no matter what.”

Hajime sighed tiredly. Even if she had been a real jerk at times… Saionji’s paranoia was understandable. Especially on this island, especially amongst a group like this where she was pretty much the ‘weakest’ out of all of them… Hiyoko just needed people she could place her faith in.

In that regard… they failed her. They all had. Prickly person or not, that **was** unfair to her.

“Sooo, you wanted the first kill?” Monokuma taunted the dancer again.

Hiyoko moaned guiltily.

“I’m sorry, you guys… If I knew I’d be sacrificing you, I wouldn’t have gone through with this crap. And I ended up killing Owari instead of Tsumiki… Even if I thought she was suspicious as hell, that’s no excuse… I guess… I’m the one who fucked up and went crazy.”

“I see, I see… Interesting. But…” Monokuma nodded sagely before bowing his head miserably. “As far as motives to kill are concerned, wanting to see your dad is boooooooooooooooring…” The bear cackled as people looked to him in confusion. “Sooo… It seems there’s no point in basking in the afterglow, so let’s hurry up and begin the Punishment!”

Monomi threw her paws up in the air in a panic.

“N-No, you can’t!”

Monokuma huffed and corkscrew punched her out of the way in aggravation.

“Jeez, get outta my way! There… Now that my annoying little sister has been dealt with, let’s get back to business.”

Hiyoko tensed and then shouted at Monokuma.

“HEY! Hold on! Don’t you owe us some memories since I murdered Owari?!”

Monokuma belted out a laugh, clutching his belly.

“I’ve prepared a special Punishment for Hiyoko Saionji, the Ultimate Traditional Dancer~!”

Hiyoko shook with poorly contained rage.

“AT LEAST TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED TO MY DAD, YOU BASTARD!!!”

“Let’s give it everything we’ve got! It’s… PUNISHMENT TIIIIIIIME~!” Monokuma cheered.

“DAAAAAAAAAADDY…!” Hiyoko wailed, once more ignored by the bear as he began the execution, slamming his gavel down on the button.

Her classmates and teacher could only watch in muted horror as a screen displayed an 8-bit version of Monokuma dragging off Hiyoko, declaring she was found guilty. In the courtroom, a collar clamped down on the dancer’s neck, and dragged her back to the elevator by a chain… The last look they saw on her face was one of pain and fear.

… This was going to hurt. For all of them.

~*~

**Shred Her on the Dance Floor: Ultimate Traditional Dancer, Hiyoko Saionji’s Execution**

As the screen flickered on in the courtroom, displaying the site of Saionji’s execution, they saw Hiyoko was on a stage, and a Noh mask was forced on her face. Suddenly, spotlights turned on over and under the stage, giving the dancer a perfect view of everything. Even though she was no longer chained, there was an audience of Monokuma’s before her, so she knew that she wouldn’t be able to just run away.

Her shoulders sagged in defeat. But then, unseen by Hajime and the rest, a sign flickered on in the back of the room, instructing Saionji to dance following the lighted sections on the floor of the stage – if she completed the dance all the way to the end, she would be allowed to leave. Green lights were areas she could dance on; red areas were off-limits.

Feeling better about the stakes, though the neon lighting on the floor certainly disturbed her, Hiyoko began dancing using the form of Noh Mai, a form of Japanese traditional dance. At first, it wasn’t bad. The lighting on the floor was slow-moving enough she could keep up and maintain the grace and beauty that came with the form of Noh Mai. A couple of times she narrowly missed red areas that abruptly appeared…

But then the stakes really began to sink in. Because Monokuma started revealing the **consequences** of brushing against red areas – circular buzz saws embedded in the floor would pop up and slash into Saionji’s kimono and ankles. The dancer hissed but kept going for it. Monokuma **would not win**! This was the area she was superior to all others, damnit! The Noh mask was a blessing, because it would hide her suffering.

… Things went downhill. Fast. Tempos changed. The lights sped up in their transitions. Hiyoko had to scrap the Noh Mai pacing she was accustomed to; if she didn’t, she was going to start losing toes… amongst other appendages.

Mistakes were increasingly made. The buzz saws on the floor tore into her, but they were no longer the sole source of Punishment – knives would eject from the wall, slashing at her kimono sleeves and hair. Hiyoko kept dancing. She had no choice. Stopping would mean death – she was grimly aware of that now. The buzz saws and knives multiplied in number, and bursts of flames would occasionally belch down from the ceiling. Hiyoko dodged these plumes of fire with all the grace of the Ultimate Traditional Dancer, but avoiding the fire cost her. Her socks were practically pink, her feet bloody pulps…

Still she danced. Every time she made a ‘mistake’, she could tell the walls had mechanisms within them that moved in on her. Her stage shrank, yet it did not get any easier to keep up. At one point, the lights on the floor changed to a random corner she was farther away from, so she had to take a leap to reach the safe area…

Her eyes bugged out as a swinging pendulum **chopped off her arm that had been extended outward**. Blood gushed out like a geyser from the now severed appendage, and Hiyoko **screamed** and dropped to her knees at the center of the stage, mid-leap.

… That was her undoing. The squares she landed in her marked red… and the longer she stayed there, rooted in pain, the more buzz saws emerged to shred her to pieces, from top to bottom. Hiyoko screamed. And screamed. And _screamed_. And **screamed**. But still the saws kept going at their breakneck paces, the walls moved closer and closer…

Almost mercifully, a second swinging pendulum came down and severed Hiyoko’s head from its body. Moments later, her body was crushed by the walls, blood exploding and erupting **everywhere**.

It was over. Whatever you could say about her, how mean and snotty she was, no one… **No one** deserved such a grizzly fate. They wouldn’t be able to honor her death with a burial, that was for sure…

~*~

Monokuma cheered and bounced up and down in the courtroom.

“YAHOOOOOO! EXTREEEEEEEEME~!” The bear let out a relieved breath as people started screaming at the carnage. “Phew! The adrenaline is rushing through me~!”

Mikan wailed loudly.

“S-S- **Saionji** …!” Why?! Why was Monokuma so cruel?!

All the nurse had wanted was for Saionji to like her. For them to be friends. Even when Hiyoko was so mean… Mikan… Mikan just wanted to be friends. Was that so awful…? Was this “Punishment” for her failure to reach out to Saionji?

Was this her fault…?

“Gh… Ooooooh…” Kazuichi moaned loudly. “A-Are you… serious…? Ughhh…!”

“Ah… Ahhh… AAAAAAHHHHHHH…” Ibuki foamed at the mouth, overloaded with grief, terror, and shock.

“Wh-Why…? Why… did you do something so cruel…?!” Sonia cried out, clutching her bow and feeling sick.

Monokuma tilted his head.

“Huh? Didn’t you learn when you were in elementary school? If you badmouth someone… The teacher writes it in a note, and makes whoever you badmouthed read it to you in front of the class.” The bear rubbed the back of his head bashfully. “When that happens, only then do you think about how it feels to be badmouthed. The same applies to murder.”

“Y-You’re the one who drove her to do it…!” Mahiru screamed in anguish.

Teruteru shivered in dread.

“Too cruel… This is just too cruel…!”

“Well, it just can’t be helped.” Monokuma flippantly replied. “Rules are rules and this is the **Killing Game** after all~!”

Hajime snarled. He had had enough.

“What… What rules?! You’re the one who’s breaking the rules!”

Monokuma snapped toward the brunet sternly.

“Huh? I can’t just let that slide… What do you mean?”

“You can’t just force us to play a game when we don’t know **all** the rules!” Hajime bellowed back, hands clenching into fists in aggravation. “More than that… Didn’t you also promise something?! You said you’d tell us about our missing memories once a murder happens! Why didn’t you tell Saionji about her dad?! She deserved to know!”

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched at his sides in aggravation.

“Yeah, us too…! We all have a right to know!” The yakuza snarled. His hands curled into fists and he raised one up threateningly. “Hey! Hurry up and tell us! What did you mean earlier when you mentioned our ‘school memories’?!”

Monokuma giggled, paws over his mouth.

“Oh, yeah. I did promise to return your memories after the killing began…”

Monomi wilted.

“Huh…? You’re gonna do it? But… telling them is kind of…”

“But I never told you guys that I’d **tell you right away** ~!” The bear taunted.

“Wha…?!” Fuyuhiko exclaimed.

“That’s not fair.” Mukuro hissed, clenching her fists tightly. Even if she had no idea what to expect, she still wanted to **know** …

Maybe it would give her an answer with how to feel and respond to Komaeda-kun’s… betrayal…

“Of course, I’ll keep my promise to return your memories **someday** …” Monokuma declared merrily. “But… It’s still not clear when that ‘someday’ will actually be… BWAHAHAHAHA~!”

Belting out that last laugh, Monokuma departed. Monomi nervously fidgeted in place.

“I must excuse myself as well! Th-There’s something that I need to do!”

Aaand Monomi left, too…

“Wh-What the heck…?!” Kazuichi screamed, tugging his beanie over his head.

“That’s not fair! They both ran away!” Ibuki cried out.

“Monokuma had us wrapped around his finger, after all…” Peko let out an airy, dejected sigh.

“Saionji…!” Nekomaru sniveled, tears and snot flowing down his face as he clenched a fist in anguish.

Nagito looked down dejectedly, as well.

“An ending like this is just full of Despair… A seriously tragic Despair… But still, at times like this… As symbols of Hope, you guys need to keep doing your best~!” The luckster mustered another creepy, seemingly warm smile.

Byakuya, whose hands were gripping his witness stand as he kept his head down, spoke in a stern, emotionless tone.

“Komaeda. Be quiet. You have done more than enough.”

Nagito tilted his head at the heir curiously.

“Hmm…? Did I say something to upset you, Togami-kun…? I’m sorry…” The luckster was cut off forcefully.

“Stop. Now… is not the time for your machinations. An appropriate punishment will be decided for you tomorrow. I… cannot deal with you right now.” The heir turned his back on the luckster, who was left at a loss for words.

Nagito turned to Hajime next.

“Hinata… Surely you understand? We spent the most time together – you, me, and Ikusaba. I feel like we have a special connection because of our admiration for Hope’s Peak…”

Hajime gritted his teeth in frustration, balling his hand into a fist.

“Komaeda… Do what Togami said. We’re not going to deal with you right now. Just… stop. I see now it’s a waste of time talking to you.”

Nagito’s shoulders sagged.

“Aww, you hate me now, too… That’s so disappointing…”

“Komaeda-kun. Be. Quiet.”

The luckster turned to Mukuro last of all, feeling especially at a loss for words by her frosty tone and cold glare. Had he really gone too far…? He had to wonder, for the first time since drawing up the plans for a murder mystery…

“Sensei…?” Chiaki tilted her head, turning at last to Chisa, who had been completely silent since Hiyoko had been dragged off for her execution. The gamer’s brow knitted together in concern at seeing the empty, traumatized expression on the woman’s face. Chisa’s hands were on her witness stand, but there was no grip to them.

There was no… **life** in her, if Hajime was to be completely honest as he got a look at the orange-haired woman. The telltale rising and falling of her chest, along with the rare blink of the eyes, was the only telltale sign that they didn’t have another corpse on their hands… But everything else about her, she might as well be a corpse, from the presence she conveyed.

For Chisa’s part… she was just so… lost. Started off the night with a party, party ended with one of her students being killed, and now she had to watch another student of hers get **executed** … In a completely unreasonable, completely unjust, completely unfair way…

The blood of those students might as well have been on her hands. Saionji was right… What the hell had she been doing? She should have known from the moment she volunteered to clean out the lodge, and Komaeda’s compliance with that decision, that it wasn’t going to be enough to protect her students. She should have **immediately** suspected something was out of place, and she… and she…!

It didn’t matter that she only had a hunch Komaeda was the one behind the note Togami-kun received… She should have thrown **everything** into that hunch. Not shoo him away from the lodge, giving him free reign to do whatever he wanted. Owari and Saionji’s blood were on **her** hands. The orange-haired woman stared down at her hands with swollen, bloodshot eyes from the amount of crying she had done, already.

She could feel the blood, tainted, vile, and sludgy… oozing through her fingertips… She hadn’t even touched Owari’s body during the investigation. Hadn’t even touched blood outside of chem lab experiments in high school… She could **imagine** it, so it was there. And because it was, Chisa wept all the harder, her deceptively ‘clean’ hands flying to her face as she crumpled to her knees.

Mahiru, Ibuki, Mikan, Sonia, Chiaki, Fuyuhiko, Peko, and Nekomaru instantly moved to comfort the poor woman, while the rest of them could only hang back and watch, painfully. They all knew this breakdown had been coming for a while… It hurt seeing their upbeat, cheerful Sensei like this. Broken. Shattered.

… And they’d brought this on themselves, if Hajime was honest. Yes, Tsumiki, Kuzuryu, Souda, Nevermind, and Saionji hadn’t “said” anything about Komaeda’s plans… But the rest of them couldn’t really be completely spotless, either. It was their fault for not noticing sooner. So many of them were on edge, and they’d just continued obliviously… Hajime was kicking himself for not looking into Mikan’s distress before the party, like Mahiru had tried to do…

If he had, would it have made a difference?

“We cannot continue on like this. It’s not sustainable.” Byakuya muttered, having moved closer to Hajime as they watched their classmates try to bring **some** comfort to the grieving woman. Hajime mustered up a wry expression… he didn’t think he could call it a ‘smile’.

“What are we supposed to do…? A murder’s already happened. Can we really say there’ll never be another one?”

Byakuya’s frown deepened, keeping his arms crossed.

“... We can only try our best, Hajime. There is… no other recourse for us. We will just have to sleep on it… And hope that tomorrow will raise our spirits. Somehow.”

Hajime chuckled bitterly.

_‘Hope? That’s the last word I want to hear right now…’_

~*~

Mukuro tossed and turn in her bed. It was honestly the first night she could remember having anything but a calming, fitful rest… But she wasn’t awake to realize that.

No… she was having a dream.

~*~

_Mukuro blinked slowly as she drank in her surroundings. There was a fountain behind her as she sat at a bench, gazing at the Sakura blossom trees in full bloom, giving the area a very serene, majestic feeling._

_The soldier didn’t honestly know what to think about it. She’d never put much thought into… pretty things. Or just appreciating things as simple as nature and a peaceful, relaxing day._

_In her line of work, ‘peace’ and ‘relaxation’ happened when you were dead… That was the brutal truth._

_And yet she didn’t feel out of place here._

_“May I?”_

_Mukuro looked up at the soothing, gentle voice to see a black hoodie… and a short, yet stout boy with brunet hair. The ahoge made her think it was possibly Hajime, but, no… The bright, optimistic eyes were a far cry from the other boy, who was most certainly a pessimist…_

_And that **smile** …_

_The soldier blushed lightly and immediately acquiesced, moving over on the bench and nodding almost eagerly. The mysterious boy’s laughter… It was like melodious notes to her ears. She could listen to his voice all day. Strangely, it was like Komaeda-kun’s, yet… had its own distinct feel to it._

_As the brunet sat down, letting out an exhausted sigh, he grinned kindly at her, making her heart beat several miles per minute._

_“Wh… Who are you…?” The question tumbled out of Mukuro’s mouth, unbidden. The boy just beamed brightly._

_“Aw, c’mon, Ikusaba! You should know by now? I know I’m mind-numbingly average, but that almost hurts, y’know?” He chuckled sheepishly._

_Mukuro felt like kicking herself. Of course she knew who he was. He was…_

_He was…_

_Before she could manage to dwell on that, however, the boy leaned back on the bench, his fingers grazing Mukuro’s, making her already racing heart pump into overdrive._

_“Well, Ikusaba? Shall we begin?” The tone was mischievous, almost conspiratorial, yet Mukuro knew there was no real malice behind it._

_It felt… right. She belonged here. With him. This was where she belonged._

~*~

Mukuro mumbled in her sleep.

“Ma…ko…to…”

19 days, 7 hours, and 40 minutes remaining…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "You can't go back in time and cut tragedy at the root..." 
> 
> IT'S TIME, GUYS~ The first dominoes have been tipped over... Now we spiral deeper into the abyss.... :3 
> 
> Next week: Hey, how ya doin', Makoto, Sayaka, Byakuya, Celes, Mondo, and Chihiro? :3 
> 
> WE SHALL RETURN TO CLASS 77 IN 2 WEEKS. Next week introduces the "Future Side" of AIF:GD. :3


	12. Future Arc, Act I: Destination Despair

The silence was overwhelming. It was palpable, thick, oppressive, and enforced a sense of surrender upon them all.

There was no denying it any longer… In classic Monokuma fashion, the execution displayed on the computer screen in the darkened room cut out like the end of a movie reel, paying special attention to the gruesome, messy blood and guts splattered across the stage. It was so overbearing and over-the-top. Nauseating. Disgusting. Revolting. This wasn’t some charlatan passing himself off as Monokuma… no one else in the world had a mind this demented. No one executed criminals, **children** , in such a monstrous way…

The bear was back. How, why… They were going to figure that out. But he was back, and now they were down two patients. Two of their former upperclassmen.

And if they did nothing, more casualties would be on the way.

“Good to know we can predict **some** things…” Byakuya dryly quipped, arms crossed. “Damn bear hasn’t lost his air for theatrics…”

Mondo’s hand quivered angrily, eye twitching slightly.

“A name. Gimme a name and a face… I’ll bring this sick fuck’s head in on a pike…” The biker growled lowly.

“And just how well did that work for you, last time?” Celes deadpanned, shooting the biker a disapproving glare. She was seated in a chair, one leg crossed over the other. “Anger will not help us here. We need clear minds to assess the information we know so far…”

Mondo snorted, lowering his arm and shooting the gambler an unimpressed stare.

“Says the chick who flipped her lid over a damn firetruck.”

A dark aura sparked over Celes as she glowered at Mondo.

“Perhaps **you** would like to experience a truck to the face firsthand? Might help give you perspective on that bear mercilessly stabbing at old wounds…” She hissed. “Fuck that bear. He knew exactly what he was doing, brought me up in all but name… **I’ll fucking kill him myself** …!”

Mondo shuddered at the killing intent rolling off the gambler in waves as she trembled with rage, raising her taloned finger. He knew not to press this matter further… He liked needling her as much as he used to, but she was technically his superior… That meant she could make life really unpleasant, if she wanted. The years since escaping Hope’s Peak had not tamed this chick’s antics. If she wanted to get back at you…There was no stopping it.

Well, assuming they all got back to the Future Foundation in one piece. This shitshow with Monokuma and the Killing Game might throw a wrench in that…

Byakuya sighed airily, raising a finger to his temple in thought.

“Never mind the taunts aimed at us, childish as they are. Chihiro, what are the odds Monokuma can carry out his threat to restore their memories?”

Chihiro nervously fidgeted in his seat at the main computer terminal, toward the back of the room. He tapped his chin anxiously.

“I-I’ve been monitoring their avatars for any irregularities… But we’ve lost some of the admin access. I’m working on a way to get that back, but in the meantime… I can’t fully guarantee their protection.”

Byakuya deadpanned at the answer.

“… So once again, it comes back to Monomi’s blunder with the wand. Fantastic.” He dutifully ignored the indignant squawk from the bunny avatar on the therapist’s laptop screen, from where she was sitting nearby in her wheelchair.

Celes arched an eyebrow curiously.

“Is it true that Monokuma hacked admin privileges…? Can a computer virus do that?” By which she meant, even if it was an artificial intelligence, could it outmaneuver the Ultimate Programmer?

Chihiro wilted.

“I… I’m still investigating that.” The programmer answered cagily. Clearly, he already knew a tidbit of information, and it would only stir up more trouble.

Just as Celes leaned in a little to draw the answer out of Chihiro, Mondo cut in loudly.

“Hey, uh… Is Sayaka alright?”

Celes’s eyebrow twitched at the biker’s clear interference, and was about to voice her displeasure, when she shot a look over at the former idol, out of habit.

… Oh. That wasn’t good. Interference or not, Mondo’s concern had merit.

Makoto chuckled weakly, having allowed one of his hands to be clung to by Sayaka’s, while his other was wrapped around her shoulder; Sayaka’s own grip looked to be very tight, from the whites of her knuckles. Her shoulders were hunched over, and she just looked so small. That wasn’t the alarming part… No, that honor belonged exclusively to her empty eyes… her pale, mostly blank expression.

Mondo and Chihiro recognized that expression right away. Sayaka was clearly distressed, and who could blame her, after what they watched? She’d be comatose like that for some time…

Surprisingly, Byakuya’s expression softened the tiniest amount. It was almost contrived… but the difference was there.

“… We’re not going to get anywhere like this. Let’s… call it a night. We’ll all need the rest, with the days ahead.”

Celes held a knuckle over her mouth, eyes never straying from Sayaka.

“Indeed. Analysis can wait until morning… at the very least…”

Wordlessly, it was decided to leave Sayaka in Makoto’s capable hands. They didn’t make it a big spectacle and provoke her, even if they were concerned about this severe reaction. The most they could do for her right now… was take tonight’s guard duty in shifts between Byakuya, Celes, and Mondo. Give Makoto and Sayaka the night off, this once.

… It’s not like any of them were actually going to get sleep, anyway. Not after that.

~*~

“Sh… She… She…” Sayaka mumbled, hours after they’d gone off to bed. Her voice was tiny, broken, and small as she was pressed up against the luckster like he was a lifeline. Makoto just kept his arms wrapped around her consolingly, waiting patiently for her to find the words she needed to let out. “She was just a… child…”

“I know.” Makoto mumbled back, closing his eyes solemnly as he rubbed her back. Hiyoko Saionji was a year older than them, but did that matter, in the grand scheme of things? Before the cruel eyes of Monokuma, they were all children… No one deserved a death that barbaric and malicious.

The dancer hadn’t even known all the rules. None of them had. Not in Hope’s Peak, and not in this virtual simulation… They were all lambs to the slaughter.

Sayaka sobbed, her grip on Makoto tightening painfully.

“I… I made the same mistakes she did… I-I even did them **intentionally** …” The former idol said, barely above a whisper. Her eyes turned to pinpricks, in anguish. “D… Did I… Should I have gotten punished like that? Is that why all this is happening? Sh-Should I have just… died…?”

Makoto’s own grip in the hug tightened, almost possessively. He shook his head firmly.

“No, no you didn’t deserve to die!” The luckster’s strong words were a little jarring for the bluenette, but she let him continue to speak… Her mind practically begged for salvation. “Sayaka, you didn’t go through with your attempted murder! You helped keep everyone together when we went through the trials… You’ve shown more than enough remorse and regret, and you atoned for something you never did! Sayaka, you never deserved an execution like that… Not now, not ever.”

Sayaka’s eyes fell, her hold on him slackening a little, but not too much.

“Saionji-senpai was a dancer, Makoto… She… might’ve been groomed for the role, but that bond with her father… The way she wasn’t sure if she could trust anybody… Hell, even the murder weapon was what I was going to use… It just feels like… a harsh reminder of my sins. A slap in the face…”

Makoto smiled a little bitterly at that, understanding where she was coming from.

“Sayaka… if we’re drawing parallels, wouldn’t that mean that I kind of… inspired you to kill?” He could feel her freeze in his arms, and to be fair, maybe it was a bit of a stretch comparing him and Komaeda-senpai… But in a sense… “I mean, maybe I didn’t go the route Senpai did. But still – I wasn’t able to stop you from thinking about murder, right? After we watched those videos? I… I have to admit, back then, I wasn’t ‘really’ thinking about getting **everyone** out of there, at the time… I… It didn’t truly hit ‘til the trial. I… I was just thinking about you, and getting you out. If pushed a little more, I might’ve even sacrificed myself…”

The luckster trailed off morosely as Sayaka cupped his cheek with one hand. Unparalleled grief reflected in her eyes as she looked at him.

“I don’t want you ever blaming yourself for my actions… do you hear me, Makoto?” Sayaka tried not to come across as too forceful, but she really felt it needed to be stressed. Whatever feelings she might have held toward seeing Komaeda-senpai acting the way he did, they didn’t change her perspective on Makoto at all. They were two different people, even if their talent was identified as the same, and had a similar fascination with hope. They might as well have been night and day, for Sayaka. She stroked his face tenderly. “My worries, my doubts… those are on me. You didn’t push me into a corner! You never pushed me into committing murder! You **saved** me, Makoto. No matter how similar you and Komaeda might be… I **know** the kind of person you are, and believing in you is something I’ll never regret. That belief saved me in Hope’s Peak, it’s kept me alive out here, and it kept me going all the years we were in school together… You never resort to the kind of methods Komaeda uses, and that’s why he fails where you succeed – he goes too far.”

Makoto averted his gaze.

“Well… The Neo World Program seems pretty heavy-handed. Maybe I’m not exactly like him, but isn’t it kind of my fault Mukuro and everyone’s lives are in danger?” They both knew, now that one murder happened it was only a matter of time until more followed. It was... the nature of Monokuma’s game. No matter how hard they tried, the Mastermind always found a way to scare or coerce someone into committing murder.

Sayaka shook her head firmly, once more soothingly stroking his face.

“The Neo World Program didn’t put them in this situation, Makoto. It’s not you, or Chihiro, or Gekkogahara-senpai’s fault. You know that we put them in there… because we all wanted them to have a fresh start. To go back to the people they were, and atone for their misdeeds as members of Ultimate Despair. Monokuma, and whoever’s behind him, they’re the ones at fault for the murders. We’ll… We’ll get them out of there. We’re not losing anyone else.” Never again. Not after Kyoko, Sakura, and everyone else…

“But…!” Makoto cried out in anguish, squeezing his eyes shut. “Even if it didn’t **mean** to put them in this kind of situation… Don’t you think we went too far, removing Mukuro’s memories to the extent we did? A fresh start is one thing, but making her completely forget Junko… and us…”

Sayaka’s expression softened, and she touched her forehead against his, consolingly.

“You know why it came to that… I don’t like it any more than you. But she was hurting, Makoto – you said it yourself, noticed it before the rest of us did… Completely forgetting Junko, as harsh as that is, is what she needed to heal… Junko was absolutely the worst, in the way she treated Mukuro – never considered her feelings, treated her no better than garbage, even **wanted** to hurt her… And against all odds, Mukuro still loved Junko. Even after we all found out just how much Junko hated her… Mukuro loved Junko. Family… was one of her only remaining connections in this world, and she lost that. She burned practically all other bridges for her sister. As her class, we tried to fill the void Junko left behind; Celes and I have even tried to be like sisters to her… But in the end, I think only you, and **maybe** Komaru-chan, had a hope of reaching Mukuro, in the state she was in. But after she began hunting Ultimate Despair… Mukuro kept changing, and not for the better. She was getting farther and farther away… As she was, Munakata was never going to let her live a normal life after overcoming the Tragedy. We… We had to do it, Makoto. For her. For us.”

Class 78… For the short while they were together, they became something like a family. Even the aloof ones like Byakuya and Kyoko… or the greedy and self-centered ones, like Celes and Yasuhiro. Junko stole those precious memories, but instincts kept them bound together. Kept those bonds intact. Mondo and Kiyotaka. Mondo and Chihiro. Byakuya and Touko. Celes and Hifumi. Sakura and Aoi. Makoto and Sayaka… Makoto and Mukuro… Those bonds were still there, under the surface. That’s why Mukuro’s pain was **their** pain. Yes, Mukuro had kept her distance while she had known them… But that didn’t make her place among them any less valid. Especially when that family was cut in half in one fell swoop…

You don’t know what you ‘til it’s gone.

Makoto let out a shaky breath, keeping his eyes closed.

“M-Maybe… A part of me just feels, this is like taking the ‘easy’ path…” And that rarely, if ever goes well. Sayaka knew this all too well – there were no shortcuts, not in rising to the top in the idol industry, and not in life. “Like we’ve given up on her, in a way…”

Sayaka squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

“We haven’t. Giving Mukuro a blank slate, it doesn’t erase the past itself – this is just the only way we felt that she, and our upperclassmen, could move forward. The only way Future Foundation would ever accept them back into society. It… It is extreme. But the alternatives… It didn’t seem like they’d have a future at all, once Future Foundation put the pieces together they captured all the members of Ultimate Despair. They have to realize… that more bloodshed won’t return the world to the way it was. Revenge won’t make you happy… It’ll just leave you empty and hollow. Mukuro realized that… on some level.” She still pursued Ultimate Despair with a fire that they had never seen in her before, but if she really hadn’t learned anything, she wouldn’t have been miserable with Junko’s death.

Mukuro was just… lost. And it was up to them, as her family, to help her find her way again. Supporting a loved one doesn’t always mean that you approve of everything they do… You correct them, straighten them out, when they stray from the path. You don’t abandon them to a never-ending cycle of pain and misery.

Makoto smiled wryly and opened his eyes, gazing at the former idol softly.

“Let’s just hope Munakata and Sakakura can forgive us after this is all over…” Never in his wildest dreams would he have suspected Yukizome-sensei was a Remnant of Despair, like her former students. She always seemed so nice and supportive of Class 78 joining the Future Foundation…

And then Mukuro dropped that bombshell on them, mere weeks ago… Proving yet again, there can be a side to someone that you never see until it’s exposed… As disheartening as it was to discover that horrifying truth, Makoto was glad to see the Yukizome-sensei that he’d come to know in these past couple years hadn’t been a total lie… Seeing her past self try to lead her former class in the face of the threat Monokuma presented, it was heartwarming to see.

… He hoped she could accept the deaths of her students, and move forward, carrying their memories. From what he’d seen so far, Makoto liked to believe Yukizome-sensei had the willpower needed to do that. She was strong. She arguably had the biggest heart out of everyone in that simulation; you can’t fake love like that. He knew from personal experience.

But… He knew Monokuma could get to just about anybody. Being strong didn’t make you indomitable. And yet, Makoto would place his faith in her until proven wrong. He would place his faith in all of them… Yukizome-sensei, Mukuro, everyone.

“They’ll understand.” Sayaka beamed pleasantly, trying to soothe him. Though to be fair, she was trying to convince herself, as much as she was him. She couldn’t blame him for being worried about those two. “Once Sensei is out of there, and back to her old self… they’ll understand…”

Makoto chuckled sheepishly, being able to tell that Sayaka was as concerned as he was.

“We’ll just have to count on that, then. If it comes down to it, I’ll take full responsibility for everything. It was my idea in the first place.” The luckster winced a little when the bluenette pressed their foreheads together with more determination, pretty much glaring disapprovingly at point blank.

“Makoto… we are absolutely not letting that happen. Chihiro and Gekkogahara-senpai feel guiltier than you do, and we’re not letting them take the blame, either! Celes would sooner use her clout as 14th Division Head than let you take the heat from Munakata. And Byakuya would use every resource to get you out of trouble. Mondo and I would be more direct about getting you out of jail. Not to mention what Mukuro would do, once she wakes up.” She pressed their noses together, in determination. “No becoming a martyr for our sake. Each of us wanted to heal Ultimate Despair.”

Makoto chuckled weakly again.

“Well… if it all goes right… Mukuro might not even remember me, so…”

“It’s got every chance of going wrong, too.” Sayaka pointed out. “And even if she gets her memories erased… **you** won’t forget. Are you really going to become a martyr after Mukuro helped save your life?”

That popped Makoto’s bubble. He sagged in Sayaka’s embrace, averting his gaze. That wasn’t fair. He didn’t want to make Mukuro’s efforts meaningless, no, but he also didn’t want everyone else getting in trouble for this…

_‘… Mukuro…’_ The luckster thought to himself in reminiscence.

How **had** things come to this…?

~*~

_“M-Mukuro…? They let you out?”_

_The soldier blinked slowly as she perceived the luckster, who caught her standing by a makeshift grave near Hope’s Peak. Most would be offset by the intense red eyes, but not Makoto – Mukuro wouldn’t hurt him. Besides… he was more curious about whose grave the soldier would take the time to visit._

_“Not exactly…” Mukuro mumbled, staying rooted in place by the grave marker she’d etched out, personally. “I decided to make a slight detour before reporting back to Yukizome-sensei. She has me on jobs for Future Foundation…”_

_Jobs that she would spare Makoto the details on. He… wouldn’t exactly approve._

_“They gotta be pretty huge ops, if Munakata approves them…” Makoto rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling sheepishly. “B-But that’s good! That means he trusts you now, right?”_

_Mukuro averted her gaze at that._

_“… Sure.” If by ‘trust’, that meant sending her into operations that would sooner get most people killed. The truly suicidal jobs that the Future Foundation took on. It was only by her raw talent and skill as the Ultimate Soldier that she tackled these suicide missions solo…_

_Yukizome was still trying to find one that would finally do her in. Duplicitous bitch held a grudge, and Mukuro couldn’t necessarily blame her. … Though Mukuro wouldn’t be letting her have her way anytime soon, not so long as Makoto was still at risk._

_Makoto frowned thoughtfully. Sounded like he needed to change the subject. He moved around so he could get a better look at the grave._

_“… ‘Yasuke Matsuda’? Who’s that?” He asked, genuinely curious. Mukuro stared down at the grave, deep in thought._

_“He was… a friend.” In the loosest of senses. He associated more with Junko than her, but they had common ground in the way they treasured and wanted to protect Junko. She explained as much to Makoto, even going so far as to explain the circumstances of his death._

_Makoto nodded slowly after hearing Mukuro’s explanation, feeling like he understood._

_“I get it… You felt bad about him not having a grave or anything, so you decided to make one yourself. That was… really thoughtful of you, Mukuro!”_

_The soldier shrugged nonchalantly, eyes never straying from the grave. In truth, she’s still unsure why decided to do this on a whim. The common ground she once had didn’t hold up anymore; frankly, she probably should have hated his guts for helping Junko…_

_Yet she didn’t. Somehow, she set Yasuke apart from the members of Ultimate Despair. Mukuro didn’t understand why; he was arguably worse than that bunch of psychos. They at least had the excuse of being brainwashed by Junko; Yasuke willingly went along with her…_

_A phone buzzed in Mukuro’s pocket. She briefly stared down at the screen, and then started moving. Apparently she took too long with the detour… She didn’t object when Makoto fell into step next to her, in fact, she welcomed his company. Maybe he could help her make sense of this._

_“It’s not like I feel pity for him or anything… He was Junko’s lover. He basically asked to be stabbed in the back.”_

_Makoto hummed thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. He could sense that she was searching for an answer to her own actions and desires, here._

_“Well, it’s like you said – you felt a connection with him, no matter how small. Junko used and threw both of you away, only Matsuda died for it. Maybe in a way, you saw yourself in Matsuda’s shoes, and that’s why you felt like giving him a grave.”_

_Mukuro frowned a little at that._

_“It’s more a memorial than a grave. Obviously, his body’s long gone.” It still didn’t make sense to her, either._

_Makoto ran a hand through his hair awkwardly._

_“We all honor death differently… From what I remember, you usually avoided funerals and cemeteries unless they were my acquaintances…” Even then, she usually saw to him first, paying the dead barely a second glance. “Maybe I can’t prove it because I never knew Matsuda, but just going off my own experiences with you, I think he was important to you, even a little. Didn’t you attend your parents’ funeral?”_

_Mukuro tilted her head, face scrunching up a little as if recalling a distant memory._

_“They died while I was off in Europe with Fenrir… And when I got back, there wasn’t really time to process that news ‘cause of being accepted to Hope’s Peak…”_

_Makoto winced sympathetically. He didn’t need an explanation for that – Junko made sure to put her to good use, as she planned out the Tragedy._

_“Well… all the more reason! I think the reason you’re confused is that this is probably the first real loss you’ve thought about, and Junko’s not around anymore to keep you from thinking about it… So you did the first thing that sprang to mind, you gave him a memorial.”_

_Mukuro’s frown deepened._

_“… He’s not you, though. “ If anyone was worthy of a memorial, it was Makoto._

_… Not that Mukuro would ever let it come to that. If she had her way, she’d pass long before he ever did._

_Makoto chuckled sheepishly._

_“We all have that special friend that is more dear to us than most others are… But that doesn’t mean those other friends are worthless. Don’t you remember that funeral for my friend from middle school?”_

_Mukuro went quiet at that. Of course she remembered it, though maybe not for the same reasons that Makoto remembered it… Still, her curiosity got the better of her. She knew better than to ask when she already knew, but…_

_“… Do you have a ‘special friend’, too?” Mukuro hated how vulnerable she sounded in that moment…_

_Makoto smiled wryly at her, and Mukuro could feel her heart already crashing and burning from the disappointment._

_“Well… Sayaka was…” He trailed off, deep in thought. But as if sensing her misery, Makoto carried on. “… But I dunno if I can be selfish like that anymore. It wouldn’t be fair to Celes… or you…”_

_Mukuro’s eyes bulged as her heart accelerated, threatening to burst from her chest._

_“M… M… M-M-Me…?!” For the first time in what felt like ages, she squeaked. Surely, Makoto was just taking pity on her…_

_… But as she dared to spare him a glance, she knew right away… Makoto was being serious. He was rubbing the back of his neck and looking down guiltily._

_“I… I don’t want any of you guys to be unhappy. I can’t really explain it… I know I was in a relationship with Sayaka, and I know Celes made it seem like she’d approve my decision as long as I was happy… But now I have the knowledge if I pick any one of you, the other two are gonna be sad and disappointed… I can’t do that to you guys!” Makoto held up his hands peacefully at her shocked, disbelieving gaze. “N-N-Not that I’m arrogant to think that you can’t find another guy to make you happy! I just… u-until that happens for two of you, maybe it’s best if I… refrain from deciding… J-Just so no one feels abandoned…”_

_Mukuro stared at Makoto for a long time after that. There was obviously a ton of flaws in his ideal outcome… There was no way it was ever going to end up that clean cut, and most girls would probably be offended the man couldn’t decide for himself… But then again, they kind of **did** force this situation on him. And Makoto was really that kind of rare soul that didn’t wish to hurt anybody… He was far, far too kind and generous, putting off his own happiness for selfish girls like them…_

_The soldier thinned her lips in determination, eyes glazing over as she came to a decision, herself. Sayaka and Celes could be stubborn all they liked… Mukuro wasn’t going to budge. If Makoto was going to be like this, she was going to be just as dedicated. Her life was already Makoto’s to begin with, but now she had motivation like none she’d experienced before._

_… That still left the matter of securing Makoto’s future… So long as Junko’s legacy was still breathing, he was at risk. Mukuro’s hands curled into fists at her side. That’s right… as elated and **happy** as this made her, she couldn’t forget that above all else, Makoto’s safety was paramount. _

_She would need to put off her own happiness… just a little while longer…_

~*~

“… Let’s not beat around the bush. This state of affairs is absolutely unacceptable.” Byakuya declared with authority, as he tended to do in these impromptu strategy meetings. He had one leg crossed over the other as he sat with arms crossed, leaning back in his chair at the head of the meeting table. The conference room was attached to the command center, in case an immediate response was needed.

Chihiro still had a laptop with him, just in case. The six of them were alone in the conference room, leaving Miaya to oversee the Neo World Program as Class 77 proceeded with their morning. Mondo was seated next to the programmer, while Makoto was seated on the opposite side of the table, flanked by Sayaka and Celes.

“How did it even reach this stage…?” Celes wondered, a knuckle over her mouth. “Monokuma should not have been a factor at all. A virus slipping by the Ultimate Programmer seems like a very grave oversight…”

Mondo growled furiously at the gambler immediately picking up that topic again, seeing how it made Chihiro sink lower in his seat in shame.

“Everyone makes mistakes, Ludenberg! Lay off! Who the fuck expects a virus here of all places?!”

The gambler gazed at the biker with half-lidded eyes, unimpressed.

“The Ultimate Programmer should have seen something like this coming, especially during an apocalypse run by terrorists… It **does** fall under his purview…”

Chihiro waved his hands frantically, trying to calm Mondo down while also trying to appease Celes.

“I-I don’t know…! It didn’t come from outside! I know that because I’ve made sure to modify our firewalls… Th-There’s no way a virus should have gotten in…! I-I would have been alerted to it attempting to break through the first layer of security!”

Celes arched an eyebrow accusingly.

“Oh…? So that’s what this is about… You were nervous about pointing fingers, because this was an inside job.” Her words were harsh, but not without truth. Chihiro hung his head sorrowfully as the room grew very quiet at the implications.

Makoto, eyes wide in panic, tried to stop the distrust from gaining traction.

“G-Guys…! We can’t fall for Monokuma’s trap again! W-We can’t doubt each other…” He held a hand over his heart, face pinched in anguish. Sayaka nodded slowly in agreement.

“Y-Y-Yeah… The four of us – me, Makoto, Celes, and Byakuya were in 14th Division! Mondo’s in 6th Division, and Chihiro in 7th, but we don’t doubt you guys, either!” They **couldn’t** doubt each other. It would have made the escape from Hope’s Peak meaningless…

Byakuya scoffed airily.

“Calm down, will you? Celes wasn’t saying it was one of **us** …” He rolled his eyes in distaste. Not even he was going **there** again.

Celes twirled a lock of hair around her finger.

“Gekkogahara should be scrutinized, but she is not the only one. Recall: This facility at Jabberwock Island was previously occupied by a contingency of Future Foundation personnel. This place was all but ready for us to use, when we arrived; Chihiro and Gekkogahara merely needed to apply the finishing touches, and for us to prepare the pods that Ultimate Despair are sleeping in. For all we know, a mole had infiltrated the ranks of Future Foundation and left behind a virus on a whim… We have no way to know yet, do we not?”

Chihiro nervously fidgeted in his seat. No, no they did not have a way to know… When they set up shop here, it was a combined effort between him and Miaya. If a virus was already in the mainframe of the computers Miaya had been working on, she wouldn’t know precisely what to look out for, not for malware of this caliber. Chihiro himself did perform a last-minute diagnostic on all the important software, but at that point the virus could have moved to a more obscure hiding place within the system, somewhere Chihiro wouldn’t have thought to check.

A lump formed in the programmer’s throat. He wasn’t going to doubt Miaya… They made the Neo World Program, together with Yasuke. This was all his fault. His attention was on the firewalls and anything coming from outside… But that was no excuse. Now two avatars were lost, and he was doing his utmost best to recover them. He’d… He hadn’t slept much at all, last night. The bags under his eyes attested to this.

Byakuya snorted derisively.

“So, that’s our first bit of legwork. Finding out who was a part of the initial occupation of Jabberwock Island and digging into their backgrounds. We’ll turn our eyes elsewhere if nothing immediately sticks out…”

Mondo cocked his head, unsure.

“Hah? Hold the phone. For a virus to get by Chihiro, doesn’t that seem like a member of Ultimate Despair would’ve pulled this shit?”

Celes raised her taloned finger pointedly.

“Except each of them was personally escorted to and placed into the pods... I believe you, me, Byakuya, and Mukuro oversaw that process. They were not allowed anywhere near the computers. We are not that foolish, Mondo.”

The biker raised a twitching hand in aggravation.

“Not when we **got here** , but… like… What if one of ‘em came to Jabberwock Island before this shit went down?”

Byakuya tapped his finger on the table impatiently, scowling at the biker.

“… Leaving aside the ironclad defenses around Jabberwock Island during its occupation, let’s review the members of Ultimate Despair, shall we? Who among them could have possibly conceived a virus?” The heir pulled out a tablet to bring up the profile pictures of each member. “Already, we can rule out the Ultimate Cook, Swordswoman, Yakuza, Nurse, Dancer, Musician, Breeder, Team Manager, Gymnast, Luckster, Soldier, and Princess. None of them have to work with computers, not to the degree that it would take to create an artificial intelligence. You can rule out the Photographer, I think, because she was primarily around that Princess while she laid siege to Europe. The Imposter, whose full abilities we do not yet know, ran **my** Togami Empire into the ground and left naught but ash, so I hardly think he had the frivolous free time to pop over to Jabberwock Island while that was going on – similar to the Princess, he was always in the public eye. Of course, this leaves the Mechanic… I will admit, we can never entirely rule him out. But usually, we would hear something about his movements and activities. Towa City is so far the biggest oversight we had, with regards to him.”

Makoto hummed as he looked to the last profile… the mysterious guy with the long hair.

“Hinata-kun… Do we know anything about his skillset?” He scratched his cheek as all eyes were on him. “I mean… yeah, in the simulation, I know what we’ve seen of him. But remember, this is what he was like in the past. So far, all we know is the Future Foundation wanted us to keep an eye out for him…”

“He is by far the most mysterious…” Celes mused in agreement, also eyeing the portrait on the tablet. “I do not see the investigation into him proceeding smoothly at all. Even as a Division Head, I have not been made privy to that man’s background. An enigma among the Ultimate Despairs does not bode well…”

Sayaka’s brow furrowed in concern, one hand slightly over her mouth.

“So… We should try looking into the Future Foundation occupation of Jabberwock Island, Souda-kun, and Hinata-kun… That seems like a lot to do, already.” Especially considering they wouldn’t be able to investigate willy-nilly. Munakata had the Future Foundation on high alert, looking for them – any access to their records was going to take Chihiro pulling the files and covering their tracks thoroughly.

Byakuya snorted again.

“Oh… we’re not done. Now that we have our homework settled on, let’s go over what we’ve seen so far, yes?” The heir raised a finger to his temple shrewdly. “Nagito Komaeda is by far the biggest wild card in the game right now. With Mukuro gravitating towards him, he might as well have free reign on that island. Do we have any safeguards in place that can keep him in check?”

An uncomfortable silence fell over the group. They knew full well a therapeutic program wasn’t going to have ways to completely immobilize a patient, let alone two, if it came to that. They weren’t even expecting death to be a factor… not with them in charge. Monomi had been their go-to for micromanaging Class 77 during the healing process… and guess who lost her admin access? With Monokuma around, you might as well pour gasoline over those flames and make it an inferno…

“I-I’m working on it…” Chihiro wilted, feeling the heir’s expectant gaze on him. Makoto held up his hands peacefully, seeing Mondo about to yell at Byakuya to lay off.

“L-Look, we dunno how dynamics are gonna change now that a murder’s happened! M-Maybe Mukuro will be less loyal, now that she has to realize Komaeda was using her…” He knew that on some level, that was wishful thinking. Mukuro was loyal even when Junko was abusing her… She could be attached at the hip to Komaeda for the entire game, for all they knew.

Celes giggled a little hysterically, despite the morbid situation.

“I, for one, welcome this newfound affection for Komaeda-senpai… She is adapting quite well~…”

Mondo and Sayaka deadpanned at the gambler.

“That adapting shit again?” Mondo grumbled.

“Mukuro deserves better than that, and you know it, Celes…” Sayaka sourly glared at the gambler in disapproval.

Celes cupped her hands under her chin, beaming pleasantly.

“I am merely saying that she is wise to begin looking elsewhere~… Whether she settles for Komaeda, or raises the bar, that is up to her. All that matters is her removal from the race… that is all~…”

Makoto sweatdropped. Why did everything have to be a competition with Celes…? Why did **he** have to be the prize to be competed over?

“A-Anyway…” Makoto coughed, trying to defuse the argument before a fight broke out.

“Rest assured, Komaeda isn’t the only liability.” Byakuya scoffed. “His machinations have shown that the problems go deeper than that… Nevermind and Kuzuryu are two more we have to keep an eye on. Souda might as well be the same level of idiot as Yamada or Kuwata, and Tsumiki is as weak and vulnerable as Chihiro was.”

Mondo growled threateningly at the unapologetic heir. Celes twitched at the insult to her late friend.

“Hifumi may very well have had his flaws, but at least he would have reported Komaeda’s insanity to me… No, I would go so far as to say Souda’s idiocy is on the level of Hagakure. Did you not see how many times he wished to jump the gun, in that trial?”

Byakuya shrugged uncaringly.

“A fool by any other name is just as moronic, Celes… Don’t take pity on idiots.” He rolled his eyes disdainfully as the gambler hissed at him furiously.

“I-I’m more worried about Coach Nidai and Yukizome-sensei…” Makoto again tried to smooth ruffled feathers. Sayaka followed up his attempt with a hesitant nod.

“Koizumi-senpai, too… She at least tried to be friends with Saionji…”

“I-I’m glad the Imposter is trying to step up…” Chihiro piped up. Mondo belted out a laugh.

“Hell yeah! He’s the asshole Byakuya we needed. Not the shitty bastard we got.”

“I must agree…” Celes darkly mused, eyeing the heir who now appeared annoyed.

“You plebeians are never going to let that go…” The blond deadpanned, his hand curling into a fist. “His mockery of my appearance will not go unpunished, I assure you. I will have your ‘hero’s’ head, one day… Mark my words.”

The discussion devolved a bit from there… Not even Makoto could mount a defense for Byakuya, considering he himself kind of wished the heir could be a bit nicer, like the Imposter… The heir lamented their productivity was plummeting, and ordered a ten-minute break to “cool heads”…

That was when Celes approached him about a concern.

~*~

“S-So what’s up, Celes…?” Makoto asked, once they were alone in a secluded room they hadn’t used yet since occupying the former base.

Celes had contemplated using her room for this sensitive meeting, but didn’t want Sayaka eavesdropping… This was a delicate matter, and Celes didn’t want to start a mass panic. Only she, Byakuya, and now Makoto would know of this.

The gambler took a deep breath, wrestling her own emotions back under her control.

“… Makoto. Do not be alarmed, but Monokuma was in control for a short period of time.”

The luckster scrunched his face in confusion.

“Y-Yeah… I know that already. You’re talking about when he had Monomi’s wand, right?” He felt a little relieved when the Goth nodded her head in confirmation. “I know he changed the rules, but he doesn’t have that authority anymore.”

… That relief was all swept away with her next report.

“That’s not **all** he did… Byakuya is looking into this, trying to recover the deleted e-mail to check the contents, but we fear the worst…” At the luckster’s increased confusion, she took a shaky breath. “Makoto, this isn’t easy to say. But during the short time Monokuma had that wand, he sent an e-mail out… through your account. That bastard bear deleted it from the sent box right after. We don’t know the exact contents, but he sent that e-mail to Munakata.”

Makoto went pale, before impulsively walking over to a nearby wall and using it to support himself. Celes worriedly asked if he was alright. The luckster cracked a small, broken grin.

“I-I… I guess it’s easy to assume the worst, huh…?” He dipped his head in anguish. “They were probably going to find us eventually… I just hoped we had a little more time…”

Celes made her way over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder consolingly.

“We’ll…. We’ll make it through this, Makoto. It might look grim for us, but… I’m prepared to pull what little weight I have left in this disaster of an organization-”

Makoto shook his head grimly.

“No, Celes… I… If Munakata’s coming, if there’s even a chance that he is, I want you to take Sayaka, Mondo, Chihiro, Byakuya, and Gekkogahara and get out of here… Maybe Munakata will still hunt Chihiro and Gekkogahara down, but he won’t know about your guys’ involvement, not with any solid evidence! I’ll stay here and take the blame. I… I have to. This is all on me.”

Celes hissed in frustration, grip tightening on his shoulder.

“Makoto, we are **not** abandoning you….We all made our choice. We **wanted** to help Mukuro and everyone here… Plausible deniability or not, abandoning you is not an option.”

“Munakata’s definitely not going to let this go…!” Makoto cried out, whipping around, hand over his heart. “You know as well as I do, Monokuma is broadcasting to the rest of Future Foundation! Munakata **knows** , Celes! He knows we have Yukizome-sensei, and… and Ultimate Despair… If anyone has to risk dying, let it be me! I’m the one who wanted this the most…!”

A harsh slap rang out in the darkened room, and Makoto cradled his cheek shortly after, staring at the crying gambler in disbelief. Not just a few tears, either… Celes was having a full breakdown from this.

“Whatever else happens, **you do not leave me**!” Celes heatedly shouted. She gnashed her teeth in anguish, and clenched her eyes shut, turning away from him slightly. “I already lost you once, Makoto… It is not your duty alone to march to the guillotine for our sakes. You can’t tell **us** to live, while your first impulse is to give up your own life… **It’s not fair**! Even if Munakata marches in here with the rest of the Foundation, and he isolates you from us… You **come back** to us, got it? **You owe us that much**!”

Makoto’s shoulders slouched in defeat. He pretty much had this argument with Sayaka… But now he saw was reminded of just what impact his death would have on his friends… He didn’t mean to make Celes cry. He didn’t mean to immediately jump to martyrdom, but… But if it meant saving everyone else… He…

Makoto hesitantly hugged Celes close, feeling even worse when she tensed.

“I’ll do what I can… But you know we’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. Owari and Saionji might be dead, though I hope Chihiro can recover their avatars… Monokuma’s back, and instigating killings again… We might as well assume Munakata is on the way. We have to keep everybody alive, Celes… whatever it takes… We have to be ready when Munakata gets here.”

The luckster knew he was saying this just as much for himself as he was for her… So he did the only thing he could do. He held Celes close and comforted her as she sobbed into his shoulder. They had to be there for each other while there was still time…

This new Killing Game… was only just beginning. And it wasn’t going to be any easier for them out here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mmm. I know I only showed a sneak peek at this point.... But feel free to ask away for details/info you'd like to see from the Future side. I'll definitely squeeze it in during Act 2, if I can. We are circling the drain now, chums~ The flood is coooooomingggggggg~


	13. Chapter 2, Part 1: The Writing's on the Wall

Hajime blearily cracked his eyes open, once the Monokuma morning announcement rang out. When he moved to sit up, everything ached. Sluggishly, he craned his head toward the window, where he had a view of Hotel Mirai… and the lodge, which was now the source of a great many painful memories.

… He wouldn’t do much good, moping in here all day. But he was exhausted from the… two? Maybe three? Hours of sleep he had gotten. It hadn’t been a pleasant rest, even when he did succeed in falling asleep. Phantom images of Owari and Saionji haunted his dreams, and a manic Nagito Komaeda not far behind them…

The brunet eventually mustered the strength to leave his cottage, though his limbs felt weighed down by exhaustion and depression. It seemed kinda empty, out in the hotel grounds – the first person he bumped into was a bit of a surprise… because she was actually standing a bit close to his cottage, between it and the crosswalk that led to the main building. Like she had been waiting for him.

Hajime chuckled nervously and waved lamely at the soldier as he walked up to her; the dark-haired girl watched his every move.

“H-Hey, Ikusaba… Y-You need something?”

Mukuro blinked slowly, registering his question. She then just shook her head.

“No… I was just waiting for you.”

Well, that didn’t put him at ease. He continued to sweat nervously at the simple answer.

“Um… Komaeda didn’t put you up to something again, did he? I-I don’t want any trouble!” He raised his hands defensively on reflex.

Mukuro stared down at the boardwalk, her eyes adopting a faraway look.

“I… haven’t seen Komaeda this morning. I just got up, actually.” She murmured, anxiously fidgeting, contrasting the tough, determined girl act he knew she was capable of.

Hajime’s frown deepened, the more he watched her. He knew last night affected her, too, but he thought things would practically go back to normal once morning came. That… didn’t seem to be the case.

“Hey…” He trailed off uncertainly. When she looked back up at him, he rubbed the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly. “Wanna talk about what’s on your mind?”

Mukuro seemed to hesitate at that honest invitation. Hajime really wanted to know what was up now; was it really some big secret? Was she that rattled from the previous evening? Not that he could necessarily blame her… It’s just, she struck him as the type that didn’t get fazed often. Durable, resilient, whatever adjective you wanted to use – Ikusaba was the Ultimate Soldier, she was a strong girl.

That’s what Hajime had thought, anyway… Maybe he shouldn’t have assumed he’d never see her affected by anything. That’d make her seem inhuman.

“I…” But after several awkward moments, Mukuro did seem to find some words. “Hinata… Did Komaeda-kun… Did he really ‘betray’ me…?”

Her voice was small, uncertain. Hajime scratched his cheek, sheepish grin remaining on his face.

“Well… I don’t think it’s fair for me to comment on Komaeda’s motives and all that… He’s… not normal.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, once again. “If I had to say one thing, it’s that he did… use you.”

“But soldiers take orders all the time!” Mukuro defended, a bit frantically. “We… We give up our lives, too. That’s… normal, for me…”

Hajime frowned as he puzzled over her view on things. True, she came from an entirely different world than he did; personally speaking for himself, he wasn’t comfortable with Komaeda’s willingness to sacrifice **everyone** for the sake of one person… He relayed as such to the soldier, who shifted awkwardly in her stance, as well.

“… And anyway, it’s like Pekoyama said – if Komaeda had succeeded, only Saionji would have lived. The guy you’ve sworn loyalty to… doesn’t care about his own life.” Hajime reminded her, feeling like a heel when she stared down at the boardwalk again, appearing crushed in spirit. “Maybe it’s not my place to say, but you could use some time away from him. We’re all strangers here. Depending on one guy, and one guy alone… It seems self-destructive, don’t you think? What happens if he gets murdered? Or if he becomes a killer and gets executed? What are you going to do then?”

Mukuro paled at that hypothetical scenario.

“I-I… I… I wouldn’t let it come to that! I’d… I’d stop Komaeda-kun before it got that far!” She was wiser now. She’d know what to look out for!

Hajime grimaced at the desperation laden in her tone. This didn’t sound like it was about Komaeda, specifically… He was getting a better idea of what drove Mukuro, now.

“Ikusaba… If last night taught me one thing, it’s that **anything** can happen.” Especially here. Especially with such talented individuals. “Maybe you’re capable on your own, and maybe you can account for a lot… But we’re all human. Even you can’t do everything by yourself.”

Mukuro appeared stricken by all this. She clutched a hand over her heart in anguish, and Hajime took a deep, steady breath.

“I’m in the same boat as you. I’ll eventually have to decide how to handle Komaeda from now on. But still… Regardless of what happens, I don’t think I want to make ‘enemies’ with anyone… Not you, not Komaeda… That just plays into Monokuma’s hands.” Stiffly, he started to walk past her, briefly stopping when they were adjacent to each other. “Just… take it one day at a time, okay? I’ll be here, if you ever want to talk.”

Hajime eventually left, after it became clear Mukuro wasn’t going to say anything else, just stare listlessly into space. He felt bad, but at this point, he wasn’t sure if he wasn’t just spewing a bunch of complicated, nonsensical stuff; maybe he didn’t know what he was talking about. He was concerned about Mukuro more than anything else. Similar to Komaeda, she was someone he’d spent the most time with so far. Even if they were strangers… they had a fledgling friendship.

He didn’t want their bond to wither up and die.

~*~

Unsurprisingly, the cafeteria was quiet as a morgue when Hajime got up there. The few people who were in there – Sonia, Nekomaru, Teruteru, Gundham, and Byakuya – were off in their own little worlds. He wasn’t expecting a conversation of any kind for a while, even when the stragglers would eventually drag their feet in here.

… Which is why his eyebrows raised when the heir approached him calmly.

“Hinata. Punctual as ever.” The blond greeted him, crossing his arms.

Hajime chuckled nervously, scratching his cheek.

“Yeah, well… There was no running from this. Best to get it out of the way now, and hope things blow over soon.” He knew, whether it was by Togami or Yukizome-sensei, that they would all be rounded up for breakfast meetings. It was inevitable.

Still, the brunet’s response seemed to satisfy the heir. Byakuya gave a mysterious smile, closing his eyes.

“… It’s a relief to hear you say that, Hinata. I knew I was right to choose you as my Assistant.”

Hajime cocked his head a little at the tone he couldn’t place.

“You know I still never agreed to…” The brunet shook his head, deciding to just drop that old complaint. Because he was, wasn’t he? He willingly helped Togami during the investigation, and even before the party started up… Hajime couldn’t even say he was mad about it. Besides, there were more important things. “Did something happen?”

It wouldn’t be strange if people were irate about the events of last night, but Togami usually took it all in stride. Togami typically radiated confidence and authority… Right now, he just looked as tired as Hajime felt.

Byakuya raised an eyebrow curiously, lips dipping in a thoughtful frown.

“No, not as of yet. Why would you…?” He paused as it occurred to him what seemed ‘off’ to Hajime. He chuckled and gave a self-deprecating smile as he closed his eyes again. “Forget it, Hinata. It’s nothing. I’m just… I’m reminded to treasure consistency and dedication like yours. I would be a fool to not appreciate your efforts, leader or not.”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck and grinned in embarrassment. The heir was giving him way too much credit – like with Ikusaba earlier, he barely knew what he was doing. But it was still nice to have Togami acknowledge and praise, well... anything. Togami might’ve been pushy, but he had the heart of a real leader under there. He cared about everyone here, and he tried to keep them all on the right path…

Maybe that was the real reason he came to breakfast, this morning. Not because of how Togami or Yukizome-sensei would have dragged him here anyway, but because deep down he admired and respected them. He wanted to be here. For their sake, at least.

It didn’t take long for the others to trickle in. He spotted even Mukuro and Fuyuhiko among the crowd; they likely had Sensei to thank for that, in wrangling them all here. Chisa glanced around the cafeteria expectantly, a tired, strained smile tugging at her lips.

“Alright… are we all here? Is this everybody?”

“I think so…” Kazuichi muttered, rubbing the back of his head. He laughed nervously. “Who’d miss the wakeup call? Ehehe…”

For everything she’d been through, Chisa could still muster the rounds of going to everyone’s cottages and pounding on their doors… Or maybe that was a coping mechanism for her, to make sure everyone was still alive.

… That woman still terrified the shit out of the mechanic, how casual she was with dragging people if she ‘needed’ to… Even if he felt bad for her, that ever-present **smile** was a force to be reckoned with…

Fuyuhiko snorted.

“We gonna take attendance before we eat? That shit sounds like something you do in elementary school…”

Mahiru pointed at the yakuza accusingly, hair a bit frazzled from her own restless night of sleep.

“You…! Can’t you cut out the tough guy act for a day?! After all we went through yesterday?” She demanded heatedly. Fuyuhiko deadpanned at the photographer, but kept his mouth clamped shut for once, surprising Hajime a little.

Teruteru combed his hair suavely, grinning pervertedly.

“All of the girls are **definitely** here~! You can trust me on this. I marked all you cuties down as being present, I saw you all~…”

Ibuki shuddered and cried out dramatically.

“Teruteru-chan’s still a creep…! Ibuki has the willies!”

Mikan poked her fingers together nervously, smiling anxiously.

“I-Isn’t it a good thing he’s keeping an eye out for us…?”

Mahiru scratched her cheek sheepishly.

“… Tsumiki, we’ll talk about this later. There’s what a kind and caring person does… and then there’s what Hanamura does…”

Peko crossed her arms, face calm and composed.

“I believe everyone is here… with the exception of Komaeda. I count fifteen heads here.”

Chisa’s eyes widened as she looked around with more alarm than before.

“Has anyone seen Komaeda?!”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mukuro tense up as well. Teruteru humphed poking at his chin skeptically.

“Who cares about a guy like him? Sometimes, too many cooks in the kitchen spoils the broth!” He adopted a look of outrage. “And who says I want him eating my divine dishes, anyway?!”

… So Teruteru made today’s breakfast… Somehow, that made Hajime feel a little better, after the taste he had gotten to experience last night. Then again, he knew it was going to be addicting, having meals like this. Would he ever be able to eat normal food again?

“He is cursed… A child who summons misfortune, so to speak.” Tanaka nodded sagely, arms crossed.

Hajime scratched his cheek, understanding why Nagito wasn’t super popular.

“Well, that may be, but…” He trailed off as Nekomaru abruptly bellowed out.

“J-Just letting you know… I don’t know anything! W-Without hesitation… I-I don’t know anything about Komaeda at all!”

Kazuichi pointed accusingly.

“He’s right, forget him! Let’s just forget about that creep already!”

Chiaki tilted her head curiously.

“… They’re obviously acting suspicious, aren’t they?”

“I-I’m not suspicious!” Kazuichi defended himself. Nekomaru was quick to follow suit.

“Hmph! That’s right! I-I’m not suspicious!”

Monokuma took that time to make his unwanted appearance.

“What’s up? Did someone get kidnapped or something?” The bear tilted his head adorably.

“Y-You came at just the right time…!” Nekomaru bellowed.

“Hm? At the right time…?” Monokuma echoed.

“N-No… It’s nothing…” Nekomaru clenched a fist, looking down in anguish.

Monokuma started panting as he poked his paws together nervously.

“I don’t really get it, but… you must have yearned for me. Your outlook on life must have changed due to my cuteness, so your body can’t stand to live without me, huh? ‘I-I can’t help myself, you know… M-My body… reacts to Monokuma… on its own…’ Somethin’ like that, right?” The bear giggled at his own joke.

Mahiru huffed impatiently.

“Who cares about that? Just hurry up and tell us why you’re here.” She demanded.

Monokuma sighed wistfully.

“To be honest, I’m searching, too. My valued servant… has disappeared!”

“Your servant?” Hajime blinked owlishly.

Monokuma hung his head in shame.

“You know, my Monobeasts… One of them just disappeared…” The bear tilted his head curiously. “Maybe I cut back on the cost of their food too much? Perhaps they’re boycotting me?”

Gundham chuckled to himself, muttering.

“’But… that guy is the weakest of the League of Four… How shameful for a Monobeast to lose to a mere human…’ That’s what you want to say, right?”

“Hm?” Monokuma turned sharply to the breeder.

But Gundham crossed his arms, looking off to the side disinterestedly.

“Though this is merely the prelude, the climax will occur soon after…” The breeder struck a sensational, dramatic pose. “Now then, let me hear you scream! I shall make such sweet music for you!”

Monokuma hummed unconvincingly to himself, seeming quite unamused. Mahiru made a vague gesture, frowning.

“Hey, Tanaka… You should stop playing with that stuffed animal.”

“I’m still being called a stuffed animal…” Monokuma grumbled, turning his back on them all. “Oh well… It doesn’t look like you guys don’t know anything about my Monobeast either… Then, it’s a waste of time for me to worry about it. I don’t wanna go bald from worrying too much. A wise catbot once said, ‘Our eyes are on the front so we can keep moving forward!’”

The bear then took his leave, leaving them mystified and curious.

“Hey, what do you think he meant just now? He said something about a Monobeast disappearing…” Peko wondered aloud.

Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully.

“Hmm… The only possibility I can think of is…” She trailed off as Monomi made her appearance.

“Um… Were you in the middle of something? If so, I can just come back later…” The rabbit said graciously.

Chisa tilted her head curiously, despite other things being on her mind than Monokuma’s nonsense.

“Hey, Monomi… Did you have anything to do with the disappearing Monobeast?”

Monomi pumped a paw in the air victoriously.

“Ah, yes! That’s right! Tadaaa! I’m the one who defeated that Monobeast!” She asserted proudly, paws at her hips.

“Y-You did?!” Hajime couldn’t bring himself to believe it.

Kazuichi scratched his cheek.

“Defeating a monster like that… How the hell did someone like you pull that off?”

Monomi giggled, spreading her paws out comfortingly.

“The details aren’t important! Anyway, I’ve released the **bridge gate** for you all!” The bunny announced. Chiaki tilted her head.

“If the gate is open… That means we can go to the **new island** across the bridge, right?”

“I-IS THAT TRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUEEEEEE?!” Nekomaru bellowed.

Monomi nodded sagely.

“Ahem! That’s totally right! Now that you all can go to more areas, let’s all get along and live a fun life for sure this time! Love, love~!”

Mikan poked her fingers together anxiously.

“L-Living together on this island isn’t what’s important… W-We need to find a way to escape.”

“Of course! Escaping from this island is our main goal!” Mahiru agreed wholeheartedly.

“… Huh?” Monomi tilted her head in confusion.

Ibuki raised a finger fiercely.

“Nobody wants to live in a swashbuckling, Hollywood type, action film!”

Mikan nodded quickly in agreement.

“I-I want to live a life where I can be more average… a life where nothing happens… That’s better for me.”

Kazuichi grinned excitedly, pumping his fists.

“All right! If you find anything that can be salvaged for boat parts, let me know immediately!”

Monomi hung her head a little in disappointment.

“I-It seems like… everyone’s united on a path that’s different from what I had planned…” She mumbled dejectedly. Gundham laughed uproariously, bringing out his hamsters again.

“FWAHAHAHA! Then let’s disperse! The time has come to release this cursed seal!”

Fuyuhiko smirked, raising a hand casually.

“Okay, then. Let’s find a way out of this hellhole!”

“That is… impossible…” Monomi lamented. “Leaving the island… is no longer possible…”

The rabbit disappeared before any of them could question her cryptic statements. But more importantly, Sensei had all of their attention again when she slammed her hands down on the table she was seated at.

“Before you all run off… We need to talk, you guys!” Her smile became the tiniest bit twitchy as she turned towards the coach and mechanic. “… **Especially** you two. Now, I’m only going to ask this once: Where is Komaeda-kun…?”

… There was something sad about watching a grown man like Nekomaru wailing like a baby. It was kind of expected from Kazuichi… But they both sung like canaries, all the same. It wasn’t long before Mukuro slipped away to free the luckster, even before Chisa had requested for someone to do that.

Hajime squirmed a little uncomfortably, where he was seated with Byakuya, Ibuki, and Chiaki. He knew he wasn’t going to enjoy seeing the luckster again, so soon…

~*~

Nagito chuckled as he sat down at an open table, rubbing at his wrists but otherwise appearing as if he hadn’t just been tied up by his peers.

“Thank you, Ikusaba! I’m truly grateful for your help! For you to be worried over trash like me… I’m so moved!”

Hajime rubbed his chin as he noted Mukuro moving to sit at her own empty table, not sparing the luckster a single word. It’s true she could have said something while going to untie him, or on their way back from the lodge, but from the way she kept her gaze averted the brunet got the sneaking suspicion that not much had been said, if at all. He was honestly… a little relieved by this turn of events. It meant Mukuro was possibly moving past being blindly loyal.

Everyone else was obviously shooting the luckster wary or distrustful looks. Or in cases like Ibuki, she just tried to staring at him; and in Mikan’s case, she looked to be on the verge of falling apart.

Chisa just clapped her hands together contentedly, forcing the biggest smile she could muster.

“We’re all here… Great…” The teacher took a deep, composed breath. She then released it calmly, seeming to wrangle her own nerves and emotions under control. “I know it’s not easy, you guys… But we have to talk. We can’t be walking on eggshells around each other. So… Even if it seems a bit weird for me to say, I want you guys… to let it all out, here. Don’t hold anything back. If you’re angry, upset, sad, or some mix of it all… Let us have it. The floor is yours.”

Hajime winced at the orange-haired woman’s decision. It was a bold move, but he had to admit, it was way nicer than the tongue-lashing he was expecting right off the bat. Clearly, she had a game plan. Just letting people vent here, that seemed way too risky, considering she wanted them all to get along.

… Then again, her strategy up until now had involved preaching about camaraderie. If a murder happened despite that strategy, that meant there were grievances and distrust amongst the group… Maybe this did need to happen. Still, couldn’t Yukizome-sensei have structured this a little better…? He could see the many, many different ways this could go wrong…

At least he wasn’t the only one. Byakuya was looking over at Chisa with an arched eyebrow that demanded an explanation. However, Chisa just kept quiet and looking out among the students, waiting for them to take her up on her offer.

Fuyuhiko snorted derisively, his lips curling in a distasteful sneer. Hajime wasn’t surprised the yakuza would be at the forefront of people with grievances.

“We finally done with the Kumbaya crap? You done licking your wounds? You done **lying** to yourselves?” The yakuza raised a hand casually, one hand on his hip. “Welcome to the real world. Yeah, people lie, manipulate, and murder. Death **was gonna happen**. It’s gonna happen again. The sooner you all accept that… the easier you make it on yourself.”

Mahiru growled lowly in frustration.

“What the hell do you know?! Saionji… was a victim, too…! You can’t just lay this all on her!”

Fuyuhiko curled a fist as he raised his voice aggressively, shouting at the photographer.

“Shut the hell up! Who said I was pointing fingers, bitch? You’re the one that brought up that shitty twerp all on your own. I was just saying **a murder was inevitable**! If it wasn’t that twerp, it would’ve been that psycho fuck with the fireworks, or the coward that kept quiet ‘cause he **wanted** that psycho fuck to die, or even that two-faced broad that got taken in by ‘thoughts of her people’ or whatever horseshit she used as an excuse before wimping out at the last second…” The blond raged, his hands twitching furiously. “But since you wanna talk about Saionji, **fine**! Let’s talk about her, too! You think that bitch is innocent in all this?”

Mahiru seemed to hesitate as Fuyuhiko gave his rebuttal. It seemed she’d revealed her hand a bit earlier than she had wanted, but it was too late now. All eyes were on her.

“I… I didn’t say she was **innocent** …” The photographer sidestepped the accusation, hands clasped behind her back anxiously. “Just… This whole thing about not trusting each other, isn’t this the whole reason she panicked in the first place? What gives any of us the right to look down on her? We were all in her shoes, so she doesn’t deserve to be singled out here. We’re… We’re all at fault.”

Fuyuhiko snorted again, crossing his arms and looking off to the side.

“I’m not singling out anyone here, don’t put words in my mouth either. But grow up, ya bitch…” At her shocked, disbelieving gaze, he scowled, glaring at her out of the corner of his eye, reproachfully. “None of us have the right to look down on her? That ain’t what this is about, this is about **accountability**. The twerp snapped because everybody didn’t trust each other? Well, **no shit**! Everybody’s got something to hide, we only look after #1, so of course we can’t **trust** each other! Not the way you guys **want** us to trust each other, unwaveringly, unflinchingly… Whether you like it or not, Saionji **chose** to murder… Or don’t you remember what she said? **Owari wasn’t her target**. That was just a damn accident. Not like it would’ve been much better if she had stabbed and killed her real target… Saionji **chose** to go all the way. She coulda called it off any time, but she didn’t! Maybe she didn’t know the rules, but she’s still a **murderer**! That fact will never change.”

Mahiru appeared as if the air had been sucked out of her lungs as she wordlessly tried to argue the yakuza’s points. In the end, she just stared down shamefully at the floor. She clutched the strap to her camera bag in anguish.

“Um… Excuse me? Might I interject?” Sonia decided to chip in, poking her fingers together anxiously.

Fuyuhiko side-glanced at her, frowning.

“Huh?” He barked.

It spoke of Sonia’s innate regality that she was able to bear the brunt of Fuyuhiko’s prickly personality and not be intimidated.

“I believe you have spoken at length about Saionji’s sins, and what she was accountable for… But what of you, yourself, Kuzuryu…? If you knew murder was inevitable, and you had been approached by Komaeda, then… Then you bear some of the responsibility as well!”

Fuyuhiko scoffed. Loudly.

“This finger-pointing crap again… Alright, fine! Why not! I’m used to being suspected and hated!” The yakuza heir balled his hands into fists at his sides, growling. He turned his hot glare from Sonia to Byakuya. “You wanna know why I didn’t report **shit** to you about Komaeda? **Because he didn’t say jackshit to me about any murders or threats**! Not to **you** assholes.”

Byakuya blinked slowly as he rewound the yakuza’s words in his head. … Even the third and fourth time he repeated them in his head, the words didn’t make sense.

“You… what?”

Fuyuhiko shook a fist in righteous anger, bearing his teeth.

“Some shit needs to be handled internally… When a psychopath tells you it’s in your ‘best interests’ to show up to a party, and he’s got something on you, you fucking handle it by yourself! That’s what I fucking did. Bringing you, or even Sensei, into **my** affairs was just gonna cause more problems… **so I kept quiet**! I dunno how that creep found out, or even how much he actually knew, but he threatened **me**! There’s no way I was gonna pussy out and take chances with an asshole that basically ruled with an iron fist, or a teach that was too busy cleaning, bonding, and shit… If Komaeda carried out his threat, I was gonna meet him head-on! I didn’t know he went around threatening other idiots, too!”

“Kuzuryu…” Peko trailed off, head bowed in shame, having a feeling she knew what Komaeda might have pieced together, even partially.

… This was her fault for not adhering to his wishes, and stubbornly attempting to stay in touch with him. If she’d been more careful… at the very least, her Young Master would not have been pressured like he was. As her Young Master’s tool, she had failed in keeping attention off of him; this was her failure, and her failure alone.

Kazuichi shook his fist in outrage.

“Hey! Don’t call Sonia-san an idiot, you jerk! That psycho freaked all of us out! Sonia-san can’t be blamed when he randomly decides to bring up her country.”

Fuyuhiko felt like his eyes would roll right out of his skull as he glanced over at the mechanic, clearly unimpressed.

“You don’t got the high ground, shithead! How about you worry about your own spineless ass before trying to cover for a gutless killer?”

Sonia had gone ghastly pale again, staring down at the floor with a haunted expression. Kazuichi continued griping even as others started murmuring uncertainly about both of them.

“True, Nevermind did consider killing… She said so herself.” Nekomaru rumbled, hands on his hips as he looked between the Princess and the mechanic.

Teruteru combed his hair agitatedly, looking side-to-side shiftily.

“Well… I’d hate to step on any toes, but at least Nevermind-chan called off the killing thing! Souda’s a little shadier, just letting a murder happen like that…”

“Hey…!” Kazuichi cried, pointing accusingly at the chef. “I said I was sorry for that! I-I’m gonna be better…!”

Gundham humphed, burying the lower half of his face in his scarf.

“I would ask you all to desist your senseless allegations… My disciple has been put in his place, and the Dark Queen has stayed on the correct path! Harping on their sins will get us nowhere. Is it not the machinations of that cursed jester who frolics with fortune and misfortune that we are all in this predicament? I say let him burn in the fires of pandemonium so that the rest of us may finally know peace…!”

Ibuki shivered as a number of them looked over at Nagito, having largely ignored him for a while. He wasn’t helping his case as he waved at them so nonchalantly.

“True… Komaeda-chan **is** a creep that wanted us to start murdering! Even the great Ace Attorney couldn’t have seen this coming!”

Mikan wailed mournfully.

“I-I-I tried telling you about him…! I-I did…! I-I’m s-s-sorry Owari and Saionji died! D-Don’t hate meee…!” She sobbed, shielding her face. Mahiru tried massaging her shoulder consolingly, mustering a smile as best as she could.

“No one’s blaming you, Tsumiki… It’s my fault for not doing more when you and Saionji laid your concerns on me… It… It is my fault Saionji was so insecure…”

Chiaki hummed, unconvinced, as she tapped her chin.

“I dunno… I think a lot of this really is just lack of communication! Kuzuryu-kun, Nevermind-chan, Souda-kun, and Saionji-chan knew something was up, but never said anything.” She raised a hand to stop Fuyuhiko from arguing back in defense of himself. “Even if you didn’t know as much, Kuzuryu-kun, you still knew Komaeda-kun was suspicious. Whether it was private or not, your fight with Komaeda-kun would have affected us, sooner or later. None of us live in a vacuum. If you know something is coming that will have a big impact on everyone, and you don’t say anything, that means, to an extent, you don’t care about everyone else. We have… to work together! Not just for everyone here, but for Owari and Saionji, too! We don’t want more victims like them.”

The room grew more quiet and ashamed at Chiaki’s speech. She had… plenty of good points. They had to start looking beyond themselves, and see how their actions would affect others. Fuyuhiko grumbled about how another murder was gonna happen, regardless of what they did, but for now he seemed like the only major holdout on working together as a class, as a community.

Chisa clapped her hands together joyfully, beaming proudly at Chiaki.

“There we go! I think that really cuts down to the heart of the matter, don’t you?” She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear before glancing around at the students meaningfully. “I never wanted to point the finger at anyone. But those of you who did know that something was going on, and didn’t say anything, you need to seriously reflect on this. I was never angry with you… with any of you… I’m sad, but I know you guys can move past this! I know **we** … can move past this…”

The teacher stood up and walked toward the center of the room, hands clasped behind her back. She did shoot Nagito a significant glance, one that the luckster wasn’t able to completely decipher with the amount of emotions behind it.

“Moving forward, I imagine there’ll be hard feelings… But I want you guys to keep going, okay? Don’t let bad blood… Don’t let it prevent you from reaching out. We all make mistakes, and maybe Kuzuryu-kun’s right – maybe it’s not possible to trust people to such an ideal, complete extent… I think that was my fault, impressing that notion on all of you. Maybe that’s why… Owari and Saionji ended up dying.” Chisa’s face fell for a few moments before she slowly shook her head, curling one hand into a determined fist. “Make memories you can be proud of! Keep bonding with the friends you have, but don’t be afraid to make new ones! If you just keep an open mind and keep learning new things, you’ll make it through this! We all will. So… how about we go explore that new island? Who’s with me?!”

Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly as he could tell Yukizome-sensei had tacked that on at the end because she was nervous and worried for their sake… She didn’t want them stuck dwelling on this. But at the same time, she was also aware this needed to be addressed if they were to move forward, and Hajime knew she was right… He was pretty sure many of them knew that.

Just out of curiosity, he snuck a glance over at Komaeda, wanting to know how he was taking all this. Unfortunately, the luckster’s face was blank and unreadable, though his eyes were definitely on Yukizome-sensei. Hajime wished he could crack open the boy’s head and check to see if he was planning out a new murder already… But as much as he wanted to, he couldn’t. And really… it was probably true that Komaeda wasn’t thinking about that… yet.

In the end, it wasn’t Komaeda who halted everybody in their general agreement to end the meeting. It was… Mahiru.

“Hold on, you guys!” The photographer grunted, hands on her hips in disapproval. “I know it’s a bit more, but I just thought we deserved to go over this one more time!”

Hajime scratched the side of his head in confusion.

“G-Go over what…? Did we miss something?” He didn’t think they had.

Mahiru slowly shook her head, again raising a hand vaguely.

“I just… Look, I’ll just come out and say it, okay?” She placed her hands on her hips again, before shaking a finger at Togami furiously. “I think we need to go over who’s our Class Rep! We let Togami do it last time because no one else wanted to, but that’s just… lazy! He’s way too bossy and forceful! We should just… put it to a vote, at least! That’s fair, isn’t it?”

Byakuya blinked owlishly at the suggestion before he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose in shock.

“I… I’m sorry? You want to do what now?”

Mahiru rolled her eyes at the question before crossing her arms.

“I won’t deny you’ve tried your best, Togami. But this murder did occur on your watch! And it’s not because you weren’t more careful, or more forceful with us… It’s because you don’t try to understand our feelings! Do you think we liked you bossing your way into being our Class Rep? Do you think Saionji, or Nevermind, or Tsumiki, or Souda felt comfortable approaching you about Komaeda? Your answer would have been to restrict us even more! Whatever you would’ve done with Komaeda, I bet his luck still would have played into his favor and gotten someone killed… You can’t… lead people like this. If you’re gonna lead us from now on, at least do it fairly and let us put it to a vote! We deserve that much.”

Byakuya’s frown deepened as he crossed his arms. Murmurs were making the rounds around the class, some agreeing and some disagreeing with the photographer’s proposal. Hajime himself felt… a little tense about all this. And the reason he felt this was a bad idea was summed up perfectly by Byakuya.

“Koizumi, I… understand your frustrations.” The heir pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, closing his eyes. “But if not me, and if you do hold a vote, who else would you propose? Who else would you place on the ballot?”

Mahiru shrugged loosely, making another vague gesture with her hand.

“I think… it’d be best for everyone involved if we wrote down our votes. It doesn’t have to be anonymous, we can write down our names with our votes, and explain why we chose that person… This way we don’t make it mob mentality.” The redhead explained. “Don’t you think a write-in system would be best? That way, we don’t make this a popularity contest.”

“I… suppose.” Byakuya allowed, still appearing fairly uncertain about all this. “If this is what everyone wants.”

Hajime frowned when no one else spoke out against this idea. He wished he could keep quiet, but he felt compelled to speak out on the heir’s behalf.

“H-Hey, Koizumi… Don’t you think the vote thing is a bit much? We’re kind of still… reeling, from last night. I think a change of leadership at this point would be… Well, it’d kind of be lashing out, don’t you think? Togami might be pushy, but we agreed to let him be the Rep!”

Mahiru huffed exasperatedly.

“And if we just keep going forward like this, never changing, are people really going to be happy? Look, Togami might win, and I’d be fine with that! I just want… a fair vote. We’ve just ‘let’ Togami do whatever he wants, and that might not always be to our benefit if Monokuma throws a new motive out there! Isn’t it better to let the people speak for themselves?”

Hajime scratched his cheek and gave a nervous smile. Mahiru might’ve had a point about ‘fairness’ and addressing everyone’s feelings, but there was still something about… not thinking about the alternative. They should put more thought into ‘who else’ would be leader, if not Byakuya…

Alas, slips of paper and pens were produced, and the voting commenced. As Hajime nervously filled his vote in, just so it’d be counted, he wondered how the others were voting… It was decided by default that Yukizome-sensei would collect the ballots and read them out. But he also noticed, looking around the room, there were a couple of others who notably didn’t pick up their pens to write anything down. The brunet hoped they’d settle on a candidate – he’d be really concerned if Byakuya of all people couldn’t vote for himself, after all.

Eventually the moment of truth came, however. Chisa collected all the papers, and proceeded to read out the results.

“Togami-kun, Pekoyama-chan, you two didn’t vote?” Chisa tilted her head as she shuffled the ballots into a nice, orderly stack, tapping them on the table as she glanced over at the aforementioned students.

The heir had his arms crossed, as he usually did, and he scowled.

“If Koizumi wants a fair vote, I’ll abstain and let everyone have a say. This whole ordeal started because I was too pushy, correct?” He tilted his head and looked to Mahiru pointedly.

The photographer held a hand over her mouth in shock, not expecting that.

“Togami…”

Peko closed her eyes calmly and sighed discontentedly.

“I… could not decide. I’m sorry.” Came the swordswoman’s response.

Chisa’s brow furrowed, but she nodded reluctantly.

“Okay... Well, let’s see what the rest of you have to say.” She shot one more nervous smile before reading the results. “Hanamura, you voted for Nevermind.”

Teruteru combed his hair suavely, grinning.

“Honestly, I think we could just use a woman’s touch~… And who but Nevermind-chan is the fairest among the ladies?”

Peko frowned in slight disapproval.

“She… did try to commit murder. Are you sure you would trust her as the Class Rep?”

The chef just chortled.

“She already expressed regret for what she almost did! I see no reason to get so hung up over it. As I believe someone said earlier, we all make mistakes. Let’s give her a chance, hmm?”

Chisa nodded reluctantly before setting his ballot aside.

“Okay… Next, we have Koizumi, who voted for Nevermind, too.”

Mahiru, who at least had the decency to look apologetic after Byakuya abstained, gave an uneasy smile.

“I just thought… We could try her out as the Rep. Like Hanamura said, she’s sorry about everything. I just… want to give her a second chance.” She clasped her hands behind her back uncertainly. “Being our Rep, it’d be easier for Nevermind to see us as her charges, too, don’t you think?”

Sonia beamed regally, waving off the stares she received as a result of Mahiru’s reasoning.

“I am but a figurehead, Koizumi-san… You really are too kind! Honestly, I would prefer Togami-kun to remain our leader…”

Chisa shuffled through the ballots and plucked out Sonia’s, since she was speaking up now.

“Why is that, Nevermind-chan? Do you have a particular reason?”

Sonia adopted a firm stance as she nodded stiffly.

“A leader must take charge, even if he is not well-received at first… And that is precisely what Togami-kun has done. Perhaps his strategy with the party was not perfect, but he **tried** … I cannot help but admire that.” Sonia looked down dejectedly. “I truly am sorry I did not report Komaeda-kun to you, Togami-kun… It will be a shame on my honor until the day I die.”

Byakuya looked to the Princess with an unreadable expression.

“I… thank you for your support, Nevermind.” He really was thankful… But the way two people had voted for Nevermind already, it filled him with unease about the other votes.

Not because of Sonia getting elected in particular… But because the write-in system could make it challenging to determine a victor. They might have to have a tie-breaker, in the worst case scenario.

“Next we have… Mioda, who voted for Togami-kun, too!” Chisa announced next. Ibuki pumped her arm in the air proudly.

“Ibuki thinks Byakuya-chan needs to keep leading us! It’d be one of life’s greatest mysteries if Byakuya-chan wasn’t our leader, right up there with the Bermuda Triangle and who thought it’d be a good idea to have mushrooms on pizza~!” Ibuki placed her hands on her hips, giving a bit of a troll grin. “Plus! Byakuya-chan throws the best parties~! It’s Komaeda-chan who messed it up…”

Chisa sweatdropped, like they all did, at the musician’s eager explanation of her vote. It was clear she held great affection for the heir. The orange-haired woman still smiled kindly and moved on.

“Next we have Tsumiki, who voted for Nanami…” The teacher hummed thoughtfully.

Mikan poked her fingers together nervously and laughed anxiously.

“Ehehe… D-Don’t hate meee…! Nanami’s j-just… she’s nice… A-And… I-I think Togami-kun is a good leader, too! I-I just… I had a tough time deciding between you two… I’m sorryyy…!” The nurse wailed, shielding her face again.

Byakuya gave a small smile, chagrined.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Tsumiki… If you voted for Nanami-san, I will respect that.”

Mikan reluctantly calmed down at that. Chisa read out the next vote.

“Tanaka-kun voted for Nevermind… That’s three for Nevermind.” The teacher tallied.

Gundham looked off to the side disinterestedly as eyes were on him.

“Need I explain where my loyalties lie? Even if Togami has done an admirable effort, I must stay loyal to the Dark Queen… If she must be doubted for her inaction last night, then I shall show her the way, just as I am with my disciple!” The breeder struck a dramatic pose. “Leave it to me, the Overlord of Ice…!”

Chisa just kept a smile up at receiving another eccentric explanation. She wouldn’t fault her kids for their enthusiasm… Even if the others were giving the breeder strange looks.

“Next we’ve got Nidai-kun, who also voted for Nanami!” She announced next. Nekomaru rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously.

“Actually, I’m kinda in the same boat as Tsumiki… I couldn’t choose between Togami and Nanami! You both have a unique energy that I really dig, as a manager! Nanami just won out ‘cause of the speech she gave earlier… Sorry, Togami. I still approve of your leadership, too.”

Byakuya shrugged nonchalantly. What else could he do? Chiaki’s speech was inspiring to listen to. He couldn’t fault people if they wanted Chiaki as the Rep… He would approve of her.

“Next we have Nanami-san herself, who voted for Togami-kun!” Chisa called out next. “That’s three for Togami, three for Nevermind, and two for Nanami!”

Chiaki beamed warmly at the heir, a hand over her heart.

“I don’t think I have to explain myself, really… I think you’re doing a great job, Togami-kun!”

Byakuya nodded indulgently at the gamer. They weren’t out of the woods yet. Five more votes to get to.

“Next we have Souda-kun, who also voted for Nevermind…” Chisa revealed next. Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Like you guys said already… Sonia-san is sorry! If there’s ever any doubts about her, we can just help her out! She’s our Princess, after all!” The mechanic chuckled, lazily resting his arms behind his head.

A few rolled their eyes at Kazuichi’s vote. Really, they weren’t expecting anything different from him. For his part, Gundham just gave a closed-eyed smile in approval while his arms were crossed. The Dark Queen had taken the lead again.

“Next we have Kuzuryu-kun, who voted for Nanami!” Chisa revealed next.

Fuyuhiko just crossed his arms and snorted derisively.

“I just didn’t want the fat bastard or the Princess… Figured no one was gonna take me, so I went for Nanami. Nothing else to it.” He said that, but the gamer really wasn’t a bad kid, in his opinion. There were way worse picks out there… And she was one of Yukizome’s favorites, so…

Hajime gulped nervously. It came down to him, Komaeda, and Ikusaba… Fancy that. He knew his own vote already; it’d be the other two he’d be waiting with bated breath about. Did Ikusaba vote for Komaeda? It’d be great if she approved Togami, but… considering how she butted heads with him during the investigation, that might’ve been a stretch.

“Hinata-kun!” Chisa beamed, reaching his ballot. “I see you voted for Togami-kun.”

Hajime chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head.

“Yeah… I’m kinda just like Nanami, it’s a no-brainer for me. I think Togami should stay our leader. He’ll get better at the stuff he needs to improve on, I know he will.”

… Now it really was down to the mystery pair. Togami and Nevermind were tied up again. Oh boy.

“Next is Ikusaba… She voted for… Hinata-kun?” She quirked an eyebrow and tilted her head at the soldier, who averted her gaze.

“… I have my reasons.” Mukuro mumbled quietly. Hajime stared at her with wide, disbelieving eyes. Had what he said earlier really had such a profound effect?

Regardless, he wouldn’t become the Rep. All her vote did was keep the vote split, and leave it up to Komaeda… Hajime became glassy-eyed at that disturbing thought. He knew it was just the way the votes ended shuffled up, but still. Komaeda being a deciding factor for anything after what he did last night… It had Hajime’s stomach doing somersaults.

Chisa shrugged neutrally.

“Okay… Well, Komaeda’s the last one. And he voted… Nevermind.” Chisa blinked after announcing that. She turned her eyes to the luckster, who just raised a hand casually.

“Honestly… I just trusted my luck, like always! And really… I have a good feeling about Nevermind! Her Hope will be amazing~!”

… Well, if that didn’t start a new wave of chaos in the room…

~*~

Hajime numbly moved across the bridge to Jabberwock’s Second Island, once he found that was the gate that had been released… The morning meeting had gone to hell after the vote, but in the end, they allowed Sonia to be the new Rep… A vote was a vote, after all. Even if they weren’t nearly as united as they had been before the first murder… At least Yukizome-sensei agreed to stay on as an advisor for Nevermind… Hell, at least Yukizome-sensei was still the chief authority around here. Thank goodness for small mercies.

… Hajime liked Sonia. He did. But just like a number of others, he didn’t know what to make of the fact she was one of the ones to know about Komaeda, and not say anything. Maybe she did show remorse, but a person like her being made the Rep so soon… This was gonna be a mess. Sonia did make it clear she herself disapproved of this outcome, but she had reluctantly taken up the position anyway, in the end.

The brunet shook his head slowly. There’d be plenty of time to think about that later. There was a new island to explore. New facilities available to them. He paused as he stepped onto Second Island and looked around at the nearby areas.

“So this is the new island…” Hajime muttered as the ruins were the most eye-catching thing in his immediate view, but there was also what appeared to be a building you might see on a college campus, close to the ruins. “The ambience seems different… compared to the First Island with the hotel…”

“Seems older or more historic…” Mukuro murmured next to him, getting a look, herself.

Hajime nodded slowly.

“Yeah…Maybe more studious, too? A place you can get lost exploring…” He paused, and nearly jumped out of his skin as he registered the soldier had been following him without his knowledge… He pounded his chest to slow down his racing heart. “I-Ikusaba…! Wh-Where’d you come from?!”

Mukuro tilted her head curiously.

“I followed you. Figured I might as well.” No one else was in need of her protection… right? If she was gonna take a break from Komaeda, might as well get to know Hinata better. Plus, there was sort of a poetry to exploring new places with the brunet; that’s what they ended up doing, at least partially, on the First Island. That was her logic, anyway.

… Not that it helped Hajime come down from his near heart attack…

“I… I see…” Hajime coughed, deciding to try and… let it go. He felt kind of responsible for just leaving Mukuro to her thoughts, earlier this morning. A better friend would have stayed with her ‘til she was more sorted out…

As impressive and mysterious as the ruins were, Hajime decided to save those as the final destination, on his trip around the Second Island. Going the opposite way brought Hajime first to…

“Is… Is this a music studio?” Hajime had to wonder, gazing at the electronic sign out front that had neon colorful musical notes flashing across it, along with spinning stars and an 8-bit electric guitar. Otherwise, aside from the radio tower that jutted from the top of it, Hajime wouldn’t have been able to guess what the plain-looking black building was for.

Mukuro shrugged nonchalantly, pushing open the glass door that led inside.

“Only one way to find out, isn’t there?”

Smiling wryly, Hajime nodded and followed her in. Moving past the small receptionist area in the front, which appeared pretty basic, the main attraction of the facility seemed to be the recording studio.

Now, the brunet didn’t know a whole lot about the music industry… but the place seemed pretty high-tech, and pretty spacious. There were microphones and speakers scattered around, a wide array of classical guitars and similar-looking instruments like violins and violas were displayed on a back wall, some drums sat in the corner, an electronic piano too… And…

Oh. Ibuki appeared to have the sole electric guitar, and she was plugging it into a jack that was connected to a large speaker while cackling to herself. Uh-oh.

“H-Hey, Togami…?” Hajime anxiously asked, approaching the heir who was also having a look around the studio. “What’s going on…?”

Byakuya had his arms crossed as he frowned thoughtfully.

“Mioda said she wanted to give a performance, once she spotted this place. I figured I’d indulge her.” The heir nodded slowly to himself. “It’s a well-equipped studio, I must say.”

Mukuro idly moved over to some computers, inspecting them.

“If this place has a radio tower, we will have to experiment with the broadcast capabilities… Perhaps this can be a way for us to send for help.”

Byakuya nodded faintly.

“True… We must try, if nothing else.”

Not long after the heir uttered that, a sound could be heard over the speakers, indicating they were all about to bear witness to the Ultimate Musician’s mad guitar skills… Ibuki strummed the electric guitar… And… oh…

**Oh**. What the hell was **that**? Hajime couldn’t say that he had ever heard music this intense or **loud** before… Holy shit…

Even Byakuya and Mukuro looked taken aback by Ibuki’s style of music. It wasn’t just the guitar anymore, Ibuki was singing, screeching into a microphone… Hajime couldn’t help plugging his ears as the music was only cranked up louder.

Ibuki was moving around now, almost like she was dancing… But that wasn’t the most disturbing part. Soon after Ibuki started rocking the electric guitar back and forth, she started messing with some knobs on it, and in the next moment, **fire** burst from the tip of the handle. At first it was just tiny bursts, timed with the rhythm of Ibuki rocking back and forth. But then Ibuki really tested it out as she hit the crescendo of her first song… A steady, intimidating stream of flames dragged across the floor, shamelessly leaving scorch marks.

… And Ibuki, that madwoman, just **crowed** with delight.

“IBUKI HAS HER FIRE AGAIN~! Now we’re cookin’ with gas~!” The musician flashed another shameless troll grin.

Hajime shuddered, while Mukuro just **stared**. Byakuya was staring, too… But he was muttering under his breath.

“… I will need to hold a safety seminar, after all…” The heir lamented with a sigh. It seemed like something he’d been wanting to spare them, from what he was hinting at.

Hajime scratched his cheek anxiously. A safety seminar? Couldn’t they just lock that **thing that should not have been made** in an impenetrable vault or something?

… Please?

~*~

Down the road from music studio, Teruteru was having a look around the diner with a parking lot that had a connected path that led to a place called Chandler Beach. The diner had a 1950’s themed motif, which Teruteru personally wasn’t sure if he would have chosen that… But it was a homely looking restaurant. Nice, welcoming, relaxing and peaceful.

The chef ran a finger across the counter, surprised he didn’t find a speck of dust.

“… Huh. Not too shabby. But we can do better… I’ll **make** it somethin’ to be proud of…” It could never hope to equal the Hanamura Diner… But Teruteru would put in the hours, while he was here.

Down by Chandler Beach, Peko emerged from a beach house after inspecting it. She walked up to Nekomaru, who was surveying the beach that gave off a vibe of being a private resort for celebrities.

“The beach house is well-equipped. A functioning shower room, a well-stocked drink machine, and a closet with wetsuits, surfboards, and other miscellaneous supplies…” The swordswoman crossed her arms, frowning shrewdly. “Monomi explained we may use the shower room, if the need arises, but to lock it when in use.”

Nekomaru hummed thoughtfully.

“That does sound… pretty useful! Sounds great!” The manager barked out a short laugh, eyes never straying from the picturesque ocean.

Peko’s own gaze followed his. Eventually, her conscience compelled her to continue speaking. It was unlike Nekomaru to be this melancholic… She’d help him take his mind off the previous evening, as best as she could.

“It’s beautiful. We may be trapped here, but the view is exquisite.” The swordswoman murmured. Nekomaru nodded slowly, keeping his arms crossed and eyes forward.

“Yeah… Owari would have liked it here. This place is perfectly out of the way for training! I couldn’t help thinking she would have jumped me the moment I strolled out here… Heh.” Nekomaru sniffed and looked to the side for a moment. Peko pretended not to notice when he dabbed at his eyes.

The swordswoman tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“What do you intend to do now? Do you have another pupil in mind? Or pupils?”

The manager belted out another small chuckle.

“Heh… You can’t coach someone who doesn’t wanna cooperate… But I’ve got a couple ideas, yeah. I’ll be a spotter for everyone’s life goals and shit, if that’s what I gotta do!” He turned to the silver-haired girl, eyes dry and serious. “How about you? You okay after everything?”

Peko closed her eyes solemnly.

“I am fine. I did not lose someone like you, and Komaeda did not approach me. I am more concerned for you.”

Nekomaru gave a small, bitter grin.

“… Don’t worry about me. It’s my job to inspire you guys to dream. I can’t do that if I’m cryin’ my heart out. Glory lies beyond the horizon…!”

Peko hummed as the manager clenched a fist in determination. It was true he did not seem overwhelmed by loss, like he had during the investigation… But strength, remaining steadfast and unbreakable, was not always needed… It was true for her, a weapon. A tool. But Nekomaru? As superhuman as he was, he remained **human**. And humans relied on each other… they needed to. They couldn’t be expected to handle everything alone.

“… If that is your wish.” Peko wasn’t certain how helpful she would be… But Nekomaru’s dedication spoke to her. She could… understand him. Sympathize with him.

As long as supporting him did not conflict with her duties to the Young Master… She would stand with Nekomaru, as well.

~*~

Further down the road, there were buildings across the road from each other. One looked more distinguished, professional, and stood by itself on one side. Across from it stood a pharmacy and a nearby electronics store.

Sonia breathed excitedly, having chosen to inspect the building that stood by itself.

“W-W-Wooow…! Th-This is one of Novoselic’s Embassies…! When did we send representatives here…? I had not even heard of Jabberwock Island before coming here!”

Gundham looked around the marble floors that practically sparkled and gleamed; the stone pillars that stretched to the ceiling, scattered around the lobby of the embassy; the winding staircases that led up to another level… Everything in here was so totally different from everything they had seen. Like stepping into another world.

And only he and Sonia had chosen to explore this legendary hall.

“It… It is as if I’ve stepped through a spacious wormhole into a medieval castle…!” The breeder choked out, feeling quite overwhelmed by the ambience. Sonia merely giggled.

“My country is small, and does not have many embassies… But we strive to give foreigners the experience of stepping into Novoselic’s royal castle~! It is exactly how I remember it…” The blonde sighed wistfully, staring down at the floor sadly. “Perhaps the years have been kind, after all, if we have an embassy even in this distant land… I… I do miss my home. And I hope to be updated on its recent history… Of course, I hope to bring all of you here to learn about Novoselic! I would be happy to give you all a tour~!”

Gundham was at a loss for words. Truly, he had underestimated the many worlds apart the Dark Queen was from him… He’d felt proud, inviting her into his world, getting to know his many friends… Yet standing here, he wondered how a woman from such a formal and dignified background… could deign to lower herself to his level. To dirty herself in his humble hovel.

“Tanaka-kun?” Sonia tilted her head curiously at how quiet the breeder had gotten.

Gundham snapped to attention, but still, it was difficult to muster words.

“I… was simply taken aback at the luxurious furnishings…” He murmured, unable to mask his feelings behind bravado, like he usually could. He was truly stunned and taken aback. “To think you came from such a world of decadence…”

Sonia beamed at the breeder, in spite of the feelings of unworthiness swirling within him.

“Is it really so different? Though Jabberwock Island has a different ambience, I feel just as amazed to be surrounded by your everyday novelties! The beds, the bathrooms, the kitchens, the cleaning and manual labor… I totes want to experience it all~! Fo sho!” She pumped her arm excitedly. “Your zoo has been the most exciting of all, Tanaka-kun! Novoselic does not have such a commodity… We are still racing to ‘catch up with the times’, as they say! Your animal friends are amazing, Tanaka-kun! And so are you, for being able to speak with them!”

Gundham tugged at his scarf, hot with embarrassment underneath.

“Th… Thank you…” He coughed awkwardly.

He would definitely talk with Kazuichi later. Despite being repelled and denied constantly, the mechanic always found the courage to try and impress the Dark Queen. While Gundham had no need to feel modest with Sonia’s genuine affection… He did now have to wrestle with ‘debasing’ a true Queen. How could one suppress the pang of conscientiousness that came with that notion?

Could two people from completely different worlds really… be friends?

~*~

“This pharmacy seems really well-stocked…” Mahiru mused as she gazed around the shelves and different sections. Mikan giggled in contentment.

“We can definitely cure and fix most injuries and ailments here… I’m… I’m glad I can be useful now~!” Mikan sighed dreamily, looking around aimlessly.

Mahiru frowned in concern.

“Tsumiki… Hey, you’re totally helpful! Don’t you remember the investigation? We wouldn’t have found the truth without you…!”

Mikan poked her fingers together anxiously.

“I-I’m only useful… when somebody’s sick, injured, or d-dead… Th-That’s why people are upset with me, isn’t it…? I-I… I didn’t help Komaeda-kun get better, s-so he ended up hurting everyone… M-Maybe I am a monster…” She mumbled, eyes darting to the floor in shame.

Mahiru took Mikan’s hands in her own and willed the nurse to look into her eyes.

“No, no you’re not! What Komaeda did… You’re not as guilty as he is! Don’t beat yourself up over what he did! You… You tried to tell me. I’m the one who didn’t **do** something when I should have… Komaeda **is not** your responsibility…! So… just have more confidence in yourself, okay?”

Mikan moaned pitifully, squeezing her eyes shut tight.

“B-But people are still suspicious of me… Th-They definitely hate me…! H-How can I help people th-that refuse m-me…? I-If they don’t h-hate me… th-then they’re ignoring m-me, and that’s… even worse…!” The nurse’s eyes snapped open, and they were filled with so much panic and distress. “J-Just throw mud or darts at me! D-Do whatever you want…! J-Just don’t ignore meee!”

Mahiru’s heart ached at the broken nurse’s plea. She… really did need help… Maybe she couldn’t reach Mikan through her own efforts. She would need some help.

But who would Mikan listen to…?

~*~

“Well, the good news is Togami’s gonna be happy…” Kazuichi muttered as he surveyed the electronics store. “I’m definitely gonna be able to make those cell phones now…”

Fuyuhiko scoffed in disbelief, a few aisles over.

“You’re still thinking of sucking up to that fat bastard? Ain’t your prissy Princess the leader now?”

Kazuichi chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head anxiously.

“Y-Yeah… well… Togami sees how useful I am, y’know? It’s not like I’m doin’ it ‘cause I have to, now… I’m doin’ it ‘cause Togami has a point! We need to keep up with Monokuma and stay connected and all that… Cell phones are useful! Useful!”

Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes in annoyance.

“Yeah, sure… That’s **all** you wanna make ‘em for… I bet you’ll use this junk to spy on that two-faced bitch. Hell, that might even be a good thing. We need to keep an eye on her.”

Kazuichi gave the yakuza the stinkeye.

“Not as much as we need to keep an eye on you, y’know! You’re yakuza. For all we know, that stuff you said earlier was a bunch of crap!” He said, pointing accusingly at the blond.

“ **You want those fingers smashed**?!” Fuyuhiko bellowed, raising a clenched fist. “Lemme make one thing clear to you, bastard… **I don’t answer to you**! The only one who can give me shit and chew me out is Yukizome! I’ve acted friendly ‘cause of her, but my patience is just about run out…! Do whatever shady shit you want with that two-faced bitch… I’m gone!”

Kazuichi scratched the side of his head as the yakuza stormed out. He scowled in aggravation.

“What a jerk…” He grumbled, going back to perusing the electronics.

~*~

Close to the electronics shop, Nagito gazed around the library, impressed that there were a total of five floors. Each one crammed with assorted shelves. That was… a lot of books.

But more importantly…

“That **is** a really tall…” The luckster stroked his chin, craning his head all the way to the top.

He had a feeling… that he wouldn’t be the only one fascinated with this place…

~*~

Chiaki furrowed her brow as she leaned in to get a closer look at something carved into the door to the ruins. That… **That** hadn’t been there before… She was sure that hadn’t been a message left by the Future Foundation.

Chisa frowned as she noticed the troubled look on Chiaki’s face.

“Something wrong, Nanami?” These ruins piqued her curiosity, too. especially because of the… gun… guarding the entrance.

They’d have to be extremely careful around here…

Chiaki blinked, shaking her head slowly.

“No… it’s nothing. … Probably.” Carefully, the gamer swept some dust to obscure the message.

If Monokuma left it… She didn’t want her class getting caught up in his pace. Granted, it was probably going to come to light sooner or later… But a strange message like that… What could it mean? Why did Monokuma want them to see it?

_‘Wish-lined Parities… What does that mean?’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love democracy~ Lines are drawn up alllllll over that sandbox. :3
> 
> *chuckles nervously* Methinks we're in trouble... But! Maybe we'll be okay? Who knows? :3
> 
> I hardly touched Nagito this chap, and I'm not too happy about that. We'll definitely get to that next time, don't you worry. He's been allowed to move around because Chisa is kind, and yet... There are consequences to drumming up a murder. Nagito's journey will begin now~ Same with Muku, Hajime, Chisa, and our savior Fat Togami~ So many wonderful characters... n_____n
> 
> The writing's on the wall~ I like that concept. It's got layers. Wish-lined parities, indeed... :D
> 
> Chapter 2 is upon us~ Only the bravest and strong of heart among you will survive, from here on out. So let's do this~ :3


	14. Chapter 2, Part 2: The Writing's on the Wall

_‘Another new day…’_ Nagito thought to himself, departing from his cottage.

Yesterday had been quite the adventure. Between Souda-kun and Nidai-kun tying him up in the old building, to Ikusaba rescuing him, to the intense meeting between his classmates, to the exciting vote for a new leader, to the investigation of Second Island, and finally, but certainly not least, to Monokuma informing them all of the organization known as World Ender. It really did sound fantastic, perhaps a little too farfetched…

But truly, was anything impossible anymore? They were trapped on a tropical island. All but strangers to one another. The very best, cherry-picked from across Japan. Forced to kill each other for Monokuma’s amusement, and other unknown reasons… Considering his luck, this might as well be a casual Friday.

Well… maybe not casual by others’ standards. Just his. That was why he never took his classmates’ fear and revulsion personally; they all had such different and extraordinary lives from him, of course they wouldn’t want to abandon those ways of life…

But still! If they could just grasp the fundamental truth that overcoming the deaths of their friends would make their Hopes shine even brighter… That death wasn’t something to run from… That Monokuma’s motives should be clashed with head-on…

Ah, but he was getting carried away again. All in due time. Today was a brand new day, and he had breakfast to… get… to…

“Hiii~!” Chisa chirped, hands clasped behind her back as she barred the luckster’s way to the hotel.

Nagito tilted his head curiously at the woman.

“Why, good morning to you, Sensei!” Nagito laughed lightly. “Were you coming to collect me for the morning meeting? Don’t worry~! I was already on the way.”

The orange-haired woman’s face fell, making the luckster raise an eyebrow in curiosity.

“Komaeda-kun… It hurts me to do this, but just for the foreseeable future, we’re gonna have you eat your meals at the diner on Second Island. There are some other new rules that I have to put in place, but we’ll go over those later. Everyone’s still a little on edge.”

Nagito frowned, feeling a little wounded.

“You’re making me eat all alone…?” Well, to be fair, he did deserve the scorn and loathing of his classmates. But this seemed a bit harsh, by Sensei’s standards.

Chisa gave a mysterious smile and giggled, making the luckster all the more curious.

“Now, whoever said I’d be making you eat by yourself…?”

~*~

“GAHAHA! Is that all you got the stomach for? We’re gonna need to fix that, if we’re going to get some meat on those bones of yours…”

Nagito chuckled weakly, holding his hands up peacefully. He perfectly understood Sensei’s strategy now… Two people to guard him, and one of them was rather physically imposing…

“Oh, this is more than plenty, Nidai-kun! Really! I usually eat light breakfasts.” And it was true enough – he had his typical serving of steamed rice, miso soup, and grilled fish… True, it might have looked a bit… small… But he really didn’t have that much of an appetite to begin with.

Not compared to these amazing, splendid Ultimates, at any rate~…

Nekomaru frowned at that phrasing. He had heard it all before from some of his former athletes, and it made him place his hands on his hips as he stared at the luckster critically from over by the jukebox at the far end of the diner.

“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, y’know. Don’t go neglecting your health, Komaeda.” He had a feeling this was a discussion that Nagito had faced before… But the manager was prepared. He was used to turning people around for the better.

“Oh, I’m not!” Nagito, predictably, defended his eating habits. “Like I said, I’m just not very hungry.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…” Teruteru wagged a finger at the luckster from where he was, behind the counter, preparing more dishes despite it just being the three of them. “I have ways of fixin’ that, monsieur! Just tell me your poison, and I’ll cook it right up!”

Nagito just chuckled weakly at the chef’s enthusiasm, no doubt in his mind that Teruteru could bring out the maximum flavor in anything. Nekomaru crossed his arms over his chest, scowl deepening.

“Komaeda, I’m serious. Remember how I gave you that pat-down when you got in here? That wasn’t just some body-check like Togami did. I could tell from the moment we met you looked paler than most people, and I’ve been worried about you ever since the trial. Getting a feel of your body… makes me even more concerned.”

A tension settled in the air of the diner, like a ghastly, foul haze. For his part, Nagito didn’t show any overt reaction to the unspoken accusation. His face merely became blank, and his shoulders seemed stiffer than they were mere moments ago. Casually, Nagito opened his mouth to speak again.

“Nidai-kun… I don’t mean to call your talent into question, but all people are different, y’know? Not everyone is intended for the life of an athlete! You’re not going to get on Teruteru’s case next, are you?”

Teruteru whimpered a little before another thought occurred to him, and he grinned lecherously.

“Well~… I wouldn’t mind those hands all over my body~! Rawr!”

Nekomaru ignored the chef, eyes staying locked on Nagito, whose eyes were now closed and his smile becoming a tad too strained.

“This ain’t about bein’ an athlete, Komaeda.” The manager rumbled, eyes narrowing. “Your body should be like a temple. I’ve seen people in your shoes – some use the excuse they just don’t have the time, the know-how, or the drive to do anything about it, but it’s all the same. You don’t respect yourself. The reasons behind it can be different, but it still comes down to that.”

Nagito tried to keep his voice level, to keep it cordial, but something definitely snapped within him at the direction the discussion was going.

“And why **should** I praise trash like myself?” Nagito asked archly, taking a haughty pose. “Nidai-kun, your concern is admirable but misplaced. My life is inconsequential compared to your life, or Teruteru’s life. If either of you died, it’d be a downright tragedy – people would get to mourn and overcome your deaths. But me? No one’s gonna sob over worthless garbage, much less get any actual hope out of it.”

Nekomaru’s eyes hardened.

“And you’re okay with that? You really just gonna let people hate you for the rest of your life?”

Nagito scoffed. It was a virulent, arrogant noise that lingered in their ears.

“Are you really going to take pity on Owari’s murderer? I might not have done the deed myself, but I gave Saionji the knife. I provided her the opportunity. You of all people should be despising me the most…”

Teruteru noticeably shrank in on himself, edging away from the counter as he cast a wary glance over at the luckster. Nekomaru took a deep, patient breath, closing his eyes calmly.

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe I am still mad at you for stirring up all that shit…” He opened his eyes again, but they didn’t reflect hatred or malice… only heartfelt grit and determination. “But ya know what? I’ll deal with that on my own time. Life’s too short to waste on shit like revenge; we’re talking about you here. Are **you** okay with staying like this? Shouldn’t you of all people be about hope and self-improvement? All it takes is reaching out your hand, kid. I’m already offering mine, so the rest is up to you.”

Nagito’s hands clenched at his side, and he looked down with mild aggravation.

“Ridiculous. Someone as worthless as me doesn’t deserve a nanosecond of your time and effort. I’m only a stepladder, and that’s all I ever will be. When you’re born, you either have talent, or you don’t. And the only worthwhile thing about me is my **luck** , which isn’t always good, if you couldn’t already tell…”

Nekomaru shrugged nonchalantly, head turning to look out the window with a somber expression.

“You’re still the only one saying that. I’ve helped countless teams make it to the championships… They all had to start somewhere.”

Nagito’s face twitched in what looked like scorn before reeling himself in, still clenching his fists at his side.

“All those people… only got there **because** of your greatness. They’re only riding on your coattails. They’re not Ultimates… as ashamed as I am to admit that about your talent.”

Nekomaru’s gaze didn’t leave the window.

“Talent’s not the be-all, end-all, kid. If you think like that, you’re gonna be waiting in vain. All those teams, they might’ve been happy with the end result, yeah. But they got there through blood, sweat, tears, and by working like a well-oiled machine! That’s the real joy of life, Komaeda! Camaraderie. You don’t have to soldier it alone. If you wanna make a big deal about being special, that’s fine, but you’re missing out on satisfaction that could be yours! Believe it or not, we do care about you. We can be your team, if you just let us.”

Nagito clammed up after that. He could see now… arguing with Nekomaru was pointless. The man, for all the good his talent did him with understanding others, could not possibly begin to fathom the trials he’d gone through or the reasons why hope and talent were inextricably intertwined. Preaching at the manager would be senseless. He wouldn’t get through that hopelessly thick skull.

The luckster clutched at the sleeve of his hoodie, gritting his teeth in frustration as he narrowed his eyes.

But… he could not deny that jab at camaraderie had cut deep. That was a low blow, even if Nekomaru hadn’t known it…

~*~

Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly from where he was sitting over by Byakuya and Ibuki; Mukuro was also sitting nearby, but she was keeping a quiet vigil, content to keep an eye on the brunet.

“Nevermind… sure has different ideas about leadership than you do, Togami…” It didn’t take the Princess long at all to enact some fairly radical changes. You had to be 13 minutes early for meetings, including the meals… Teruteru was to be in charge of preparing all their food from now on – apparently Sonia, and quite a few others, were addicted to the chef’s cuisine. They each had to visit Tanaka’s zoo at least once a week – Sonia was on the cusp of enforcing them to have a “pet” from that zoo… but thank God Yukizome-sensei talked her down to just visiting the animals. They were “encouraged” to have races on the scooters Kazuichi designed – a few, like Gundham and Mikan, looked terrified at the prospect. Oh yeah, and speaking on things to do, Sonia had a tour all lined up for the Novoselic Embassy, and attendance was mandatory because Sonia was “hella stoked” about it… Kazuichi had his plate full, repurposing the GPS devices into cell phones, and also creating those loudspeakers to scatter around the islands for emergencies; Sonia approved of Byakuya’s ideas, in regards to those.

… And there were a few other, harmless ones, like being around Komaeda in pairs or more. Yukizome-sensei had actually been the one to announce that; she was nervous about the luckster starting something else, and Hajime couldn’t blame her. Komaeda had… a way with words.

Oh yeah. The remaining fireworks were put under lock and key in Sensei’s cottage. Apparently Kazuichi, Gundham, and Nekomaru had helped move them all from the supermarket… and they’d be on the lookout for any resupplying from Monokuma. Komaeda wasn’t allowed around the supermarket without an escort, and that was really for the best.

Naturally, it wasn’t fair to single out the luckster when there had been others who had kept quiet about Komaeda’s plot. But between Souda being overworked, Nevermind being kept in check by Sensei, and Koizumi watching over Tsumiki, all their bases were covered, really. Kuzuryu was content to keep to himself, but Yukizome-sensei and Pekoyama checked in on him, apparently.

“This is her vision, Hinata. Let’s give her a chance,” Byakuya replied calmly, lightly nudging his plate aside for his next one. Hajime slightly balked, as this would be the heir’s eighth serving. “You’re not jealous that she accepted Tanaka and Souda as assistants, are you?”

Hajime frowned thoughtfully.

“… No? I’m just… bummed people didn’t give you another chance. It’s not like it was your fault things turned out the way they did.”

“The burden of leadership is heavier than you know.” Byakuya began eating again in earnest. “The fact remains I failed to keep my promise. I hope… everyone will find happiness with Nevermind as the Class Rep. That’s all I can ask for. I will not force myself on all of you again.”

Unable to keep quiet anymore, Ibuki brushed some bangs out of her face and peered at the heir.

“Hina-tater-tots is right, Byakuya-chan! You’re too hard on yourself~! Everyone’s just all over the place! S’not your fault everyone’s votes were split~!”

The heir swallowed and eyed the musician shrewdly.

“That is… true.” He couldn’t deny that. He was rather surprised no one had truly gotten a majority of the whole class; they were just that split in the votes.

… That, and he did himself no favors by abstaining, but that was a matter of honor, at this point.

Ibuki crossed her arms and nodded sagely, grinning ear-to-ear.

“Sometimes we just gotta rock back and let the current take us where it will~! No harm in that!”

Byakuya and Hajime both nodded slowly in agreement at the musician’s logic. A murder happened, people’s hearts and minds were all over the place. That was natural. Maybe in a sense, Togami’s restrictive and demanding rules and policies would have done more harm than good, at this stage… It certainly would’ve just added more stress. Monokuma was going to doubtlessly spring something new on them soon enough; one murder happened, more were bound to follow. They were better off allowing everyone some breathing room after everything… They all needed it.

Perhaps Sonia’s style was what they needed, after all. Aside from the arriving to meetings early part, and the rules applying to Komaeda, she was rather… loose with them all. Sonia’s goal seemed to be allowing everyone to have a good time. Overall, a laissez-faire attitude if Hajime had ever seen one.

“All I can do is support you all.” Byakuya muttered, slowing down in his eating as he adopted a far-off look in his eyes. “Sensei and Nevermind will do just fine, I have no doubt. More importantly… Hinata. About Komaeda…”

Hajime tensed up as the topic turned to him. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and coughed.

“Look, you don’t need to say anything about him, Togami… I… know I was naïve, placing my faith and trust in that guy. But I still… need time to sort my feelings out…”

Byakuya shook his head slowly, crossing his arms in disapproval.

“Your way of thinking was not naïve, Hinata. Remember what I told you? You are perhaps one of the few that can get through to him. Perhaps it is simply because of your amnesia, but he is quite taken with you, Hinata. Use that intrigue as leverage, and try to get him to open up. Like it or not, he is still one of us.”

Hajime’s brow furrowed in uncertainty.

“Are we even sure that part of him is real? I just… I don’t even know where to begin with him. I’m totally out of my depth here…”

“Don’t overthink. Just take the initiative, and feel your way as you go.” Byakuya advised the brunet. “We’re all strangers, Hinata. That goes for us just as much as it does for him. I will not allow us to make a pariah out of him. Even if it is just a handful of us… We must do our part to reach out, and set him on the right path.”

Hajime absorbed the heir’s reasoning and frowned.

“So… just do it, huh…?” While he could understand Byakuya’s position, it was still a bit nerve-wracking. Komaeda had shown them all what he was capable of, and Hajime wasn’t too keen on setting him off again…

But… Byakuya had a point. Isolating Nagito was only going to make him worse. And Hajime knew he was in a prime position to take the lead on that venture… Nagito probably would open up to him better than Byakuya or Sensei. Hajime held no authoritative sway. He was… just a friend.

… Huh. Nagito really was his friend, wasn’t he? Hajime was chagrined to realize that he’d labelled the luckster as such without an ounce of hesitation. And here he thought burning bridges was the only way forward… Part of him must not have wanted that, if he was willing to think of Nagito as his friend, even after all this.

He still wasn’t sure how to approach the luckster, though…

Ibuki waved her arm in the air elatedly.

“Hinata-chan should come practice with Ibuki first! Ibuki will show you what to dooooo~!”

Hajime paled a little, as he recalled how many cups of coffee the musician had downed.

“Wh… What? Uh, n-no…. I-I’m fine, Ibuki… Really. I’ll work it out myselfffff….!” Wow, Ibuki’s grip on his wrist was ironclad… And that beaming, innocent smile was… was… It was just as cute as it was terrifying.

“Amusing you think you have a choice in the matter.” Byakuya smirked as he watched the brunet get dragged off.

“T-Togami…! Help!” Hajime pleaded.

“Can’t, I haven’t had breakfast yet.” The heir smoothly turned him down.

“ **You had eight servings** …!”

“… Yes. But I have not yet had ninth breakfast.”

“Togami, she had **coffee**!” The brunet begged and pleaded.

“Godspeed, Hinata… Godspeed.”

Hajime deadpanned as the heir got the last word. Ninth breakfast… Who did that?!

~*~

“… So, this is a… makango…?” Mahiru chuckled a little nervously as Sonia had handed out pamphlets on the endangered wild animal. The tour of the Novoselic Embassy was in full swing, but it looked like only a few opted to do the tour at the scheduled time Sonia set. She gave a polite closed-eyed smile as she sweatdropped. “… It’s bigger than I thought it’d be…”

It really was. She was expecting an animal the size of a baby bear, based off what Sonia was describing with Novoselic’s romantic rituals… But this was not a **baby** bear… It wasn’t even a bear, with that face…

… But it looked just as fuzzy and cuddly…

“I-It looks c-cute!” Mikan complimented without hesitation. She traced a finger over the front cover of the pamphlet, wishing she could pet it.

“Isn’t it?! Isn’t it?!” Sonia gushed with a pleasant beam. “I feel so terrible when these poor creatures are auctioned off to the highest bidder, even if it is nice to have as a symbol of high status… But I shall reform these practices! That way, we can live in harmony with makangos and skongs~!”

Mahiru scratched her cheek sheepishly, not really sure what to think about animal auctioning.

“That’s… that’s great, Nevermind… But what are skongs…?” Some part of her suspected she would regret asking…

Sonia’s face falling in shame did not instill her with great confidence.

“We… do not usually show those to outsiders. It is because another custom of ours is that you are not an adult until you consume a skong, and, well…” She trailed off guiltily.

Mahiru sweatdropped. Animal conservationists would have a field day in Novoselic, it seemed. Then again, eating dogs was a thing in China… Each country had their own customs and traditions, and it wasn’t fair to judge another nation based off your own beliefs.

… But that did set them worlds apart… The photographer couldn’t help feeling that, the more she learned about Novoselic.

Sonia clenched her fists with determination, nostrils flaring.

“I know we have much to reform, but traditions started for a reason, so we mustn’t forget our history! It is the same for other countries, as well! Using the knowledge of the past to create a new path, a better path… I know it is difficult, but I will accomplish it by any means! Guiding my people along the right path is my duty as a ruler!”

Mahiru smiled wryly, knowing not to press further with it. There was no doubt in her mind Sonia would lead her people well; she was already doing a great job with her class, or at least Mahiru thought so.

Mikan poked her fingers together anxiously, averting her gaze suddenly. Mahiru frowned in concern at the reaction. The nurse’s words only troubled her further.

“I-If… If I was o-one of your p-people… Y-Y-You’d love me, right…?”

Sonia beamed at the nurse, oblivious to the kind of effects her words would have.

“Of course! You would have all of my love and protection! Why? Would you like to come back with me, Tsumiki? We would be honored to have you! The immigrant process is rigorous, but do not fret! I will ensure they are gentle with you!” That smile was so innocent… so tender and kind…

But Mahiru didn’t like the way Mikan’s eyes widened, or… or how **excited** she looked…

“M-Maybe another time, Nevermind!” Mahiru apologized hastily, before taking the nurse by the hand and excusing themselves for a few minutes, leaving Sonia and Gundham to themselves. When they were alone, Mahiru patted the nurse’s hand consolingly. “Tsumiki… Tsumiki… I know it sounds great, but think about what moving to another country means! You’d have to learn a whole new language so you could live with the people there…”

Mikan trembled anxiously, a nervous grin spreading across her face as she adopted a faraway look.

“I-I wouldn’t mind, Koizumi-chan… I-If Nevermind w-would give me all of her love, I… I…” She trailed off in a broken, yet unsettling tone.

Mahiru shivered. The longer Mikan seemed to warm up to the idea, the darker her eyes became. The photographer could see a ravenous hunger lurking behind those eyes, but also an intent to get what she wanted by any means necessary. But there was also guilt, shame, and a number of other intense emotions swirling in those eyes… She was beginning to suspect this is what Hiyoko had seen, when Nagito cornered Mikan…

_‘Tsumiki...’_ Mahiru thought to herself in anguish. What had made Mikan turn out like this? She honestly felt so bad for the poor girl. “… Let’s go get some air. You’re not… ready to commit to something like this… N-Not yet.”

Mikan’s eyes snapped toward the photographer, and she found another shiver traveling up her spine. Such intense emotions aimed at her…

“Wh-Wh-Why can’t I go?! Nevermind-chan… p-promised! She promised! Shepromisedshepromised **shepromised**!”

Mahiru held up her hands peacefully, attempting to give a disarming grin.

“I-I know she did, Tsumiki…! But Nevermind is… She’s a Princess! And… even if she had any say, I don’t think you’d be able to just live at the royal castle with her… Y-You’d be alone, in a foreign country…”

Mikan stomped her foot impetuously, cheeks puffing out a little, and that dark look stayed lurking in her eyes.

“I-I can do it! Nevermind-chan **promised**! E-Even if I-I live as far away from the castle as p-possible… Nevermind-chan **promised** she would give me **all her love** …!”

“Tsumiki…” Mahiru mumbled, a hand pressed over her heart in anguish. “Th-Think about it this way, sh-she… Nevermind won’t be able to think about you all the time! She won’t be able to give you the love that you need! You’ll just be another face in the crowd to her.”

That seemed to take the wind out of Mikan’s face as her shoulders deflated, and Mikan trembled in both rage and sorrow.

“Wh-Wh-Why…? Why won’t you just let me go with her…? **She promised to love me**!!! It’s not fair!!!”

“I know it’s not fair…” Mahiru tried consoling the nurse as best as she could, even when the purple-haired girl wouldn’t let her hands be held at the moment. “Tsumiki, please. I promise, I’ll be there for you. And… And you’ve got a whole class here who loves you! You don’t have to go to a whole different country to get that…!”

Mikan trembled again, tears pricking at her eyes as she scowled.

“She **promised** …!”

Mahiru heaved a small sigh and timidly patted the nurse’s shoulders, nudging her toward the exit.

“Let’s… Let’s go get some air… Please, Tsumiki…” She was pleading by this point, and that seemed to reel Mikan in, at last. Though the nurse naturally still seemed upset as she grudgingly cooperated.

Mahiru massaged her temple, heaving another small sigh once they were outside. She’d have to have a talk with Sonia later… Even if she hadn’t meant it, Sonia had to understand making a promise like that to Mikan was… It wasn’t right. Maybe Sonia would love Mikan as a citizen of Novoselic…

But that wasn’t the sort of love Mikan was looking for. Mahiru honestly wasn’t sure… **what** kind of love Mikan needed. But it probably wasn’t the love Mikan wanted, either... This needed to be handled delicately… And Mahiru just wasn’t sure how to go about it.

~*~

Kazuichi grumbled irritably as he hammered away at the small tower he was crafting. Loudspeakers were easy enough to make, but he had to scavenge for parts, like he told Togami. And because of that, it was more akin to a patchwork quilt of metal pieces and screws. That meant it didn’t all go together like something you’d build from following instructions in a kit…

The mechanic had no problem at all with tinkering and making something from scratch. He did it all the time. However… there came a certain monotony to this particular request. Because this wasn’t the only loudspeaker being created; he was actually making a ton of them. And it’s not like he had an assembly line to streamline the process… He had to do it all by hand. All by himself. Because he was the only one who knew how.

His hammering ceased as he finished the touches on the latest tower, and he wiped sweat from his brow after doing so. His eyes then roved over the empty service shop, and felt his shoulders slouch. Not even one person had come by to visit in the past few hours. That… sucked. Even if he was doing this to be useful, some company would have been nice.

Grumbling under his breath again, the mechanic set to work on the next tower.

“Now, where’d I put the screwdriver…?” The pink-headed teen muttered as he looked around the floor, not spying it anywhere. He groaned at the possibilities. “Aww, man… Did I kick it around again?! Damnit…”

He hated when work got so monotonous he barely paid attention to what was around him on the floor. It was so easy to fall into that routine… As he prepared to search high and low for it, yet again, Kazuichi blinked as he felt something poke at his shin. He turned around warily, and let out a startled yelp when he saw a hamster holding the screwdriver in question.

“The hell?!” He blinked owlishly again as the hamster once more held up the tool, as if offering it to him. He scratched his head in confusion. “For… me? Really? Tanaka trained you guys to tell tools apart?”

Naturally, the mechanic didn’t get a verbal response. He would’ve freaked out, if he had. Instead, Kazuichi just let the little guy do what it wanted. Which, as it turned out, involved handing him tools and pieces over the next hour. Kazuichi figured it wouldn’t be the end of the world if the little guy stuck around. It was a hamster doing the supporting, so it’s not like the work went abundantly faster; and a few times he did need to correct the hamster, but surprisingly those times were pretty rare… It was pretty sharp-witted, and learned fast.

Kazuichi wasn’t all that surprised when Tanaka and his other hamsters came storming into the service shop eventually. He rubbed the back of his head and chuckled sheepishly at the dirty look the breeder was giving him.

“So, Silver Fox San-D was here all this time, was she…?” Gundham tapped his foot in impatience.

Kazuichi waved his hands defensively.

“Hey, hey….! I-It’s not my fault! Sh-She just showed up, and started handing me stuff! How was I supposed to say no when she looked so… happy doing it?!” There wasn’t a real bite to his griping. He really was grateful for the help and company, minor as it was.

Gundham frowned thoughtfully at the mechanic’s admission. He looked down at the hamster now resting in his palm, appearing mildly exhausted, but otherwise very satisfied and content. He stared back up at Kazuichi critically.

“Just when did you become so powerful that San-D noticed you…? Have you been training in secret? Did you have a hidden ability I never perceived?” The breeder tapped his chin, puzzled over this turn of events before allowing San-D passage back into his scarf. He then buried the lower half of his face in his scarf and cross his arms, looking to the side. “Very well. If San-D ordains it to be, you shall rejoice and accept her help when offered. I shall not allow any other answer!”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Wh-Whoa… Hold on, you’re **okay** with it? I thought you were pretty protective of those little guys. Y-You’re saying you… trust me?”

Gundham peered at the mechanic shrewdly, lower half of face still buried.

“You already have San-D’s blessing! You need not anything else. I am more curious about what specifically drew San-D to you… But I shall wait, and allow her to tell me in time if she is willing to share. More importantly, I am shocked you missed the Dark Queen’s exhibition of her castle…!”

Kazuichi blinked owlishly before facepalming.

“Aww, man…! The embassy tour thing! How’d I forget that was happening today?! Damnit…!”

“Do not fret, for the exhibition is far from over. There is much more the Dark Queen wishes to share with us about her homeland.” Gundham looked off to the side again. Kazuichi just scowled, frustrated with himself more than anything.

“Guess I need to get a clock in here, after all…” The mechanic grumbled sourly. He wasn’t expecting to miss the tour, of all things. Thankfully, the electronics store had a few decent ones to choose from… The pink-haired teen heaved a sigh. “Well… what’s done is done. What took ya, anyway? Sandy’s been helpin’ out here a while, y’know…”

Gundham tugged at his scarf in embarrassment, not even bothering to correct the mechanic on the hamster’s name.

“W-Well… that is…” The breeder raised his head back and barked out a short, forced laugh. “A time-space anomaly! Yes… that’s all it was! Life is always so simple~!”

Kazuichi deadpanned at the response. It must have been pretty big if the breeder was that distracted… And if it involved Sonia-san…

“H-H-Hold on…!” Kazuichi cried, pointing at Gundham grouchily. “Don’t tell me you had your paws all over Sonia-san! Grrraaahhh! I turn my back on you guys for one day…!”

Gundham coughed awkwardly, still tugging at his scarf while his face heated up.

“Sh-She… um… was the one who… initiated… sentimentalities…”

Kazuichi cocked his head, confused.

“Eh?” He scowled.

Gundham’s face reddened tenfold.

~*~

_Sonia breathed a happy sigh, still riding on the emotional high that Mikan put her in. She batted her eyes at Gundham welcomingly._

_“What about you, Tanaka-kun? Would you like to come to Novoselic, after all of this is over?”_

_Gundham reeled back in shock at the question being turned on him now._

_“I… you… what?!”_

_Sonia pleasantly beamed._

_“I would be most honored, if you did! I would give you the grand tour of the royal castle! It would be wonderful~!” Sonia giggled merrily. She sighed contently, a dreamy look entering her eye. “You do not even have to become a citizen of my country to receive my love… You already have my heart. All of it.”_

_Gundham hastily buried his face in his scarf as steam blasted off his now tomato red face. He nervously tugged at his scarf._

_“Th-This is all… very sudden…”_

_Sonia tilted her head curiously._

_“Hmm…? There is nothing sudden about it.” The Princess adopted a vulnerable look, briefly. “Or… am I misreading the situation? Do you have a beloved that we do not know about?”_

_Gundham tensed up, for whatever reason. Every cell in his body was practically screaming to protect the Princess’s feelings. And so he did, though his answer came choked out and increasingly erratic._

_“Wh-What?! M-Me? Not… Not at all!” Gundham inwardly wondered what was coming over him. This whole discussion was… surreal._

_Sonia looked relieved as she beamed again._

_“Ah… g-good… Then, are you at least… interested in someone…?” There came that vulnerability again…_

_This time, Gundham just had to put his foot down. His heart couldn’t take this._

_“H-Halt…! Wh-What in the world is going on here? Why… are you curious in where this cursed life’s heart lies…?”_

_Sonia tilted her head again, never dropping her beam._

_“I-I was just curious… Was it wrong of me to ask?”_

_“N-No…” Tanaka mumbled, still feeling so surreal about all this. “It… It isn’t **awful** …”_

_And it really wasn’t. However, learning everything he had about Novoselic so far, it had painfully reminded him just how distant their worlds were. To assume he was anything more than a passing fancy to her was... arrogant beyond the pale…_

_Sonia giggled again at the breeder’s embarrassed state, her intent seemed to be calming him down._

_“It is only natural I’d be curious, though, isn’t it? After all… we’re…”_

_Gundham’s eyes bulged in disbelief._

‘We’re?!’ _He thought to himself in both shock and anticipation._

_“We’re **classmates** , going through the same ordeal together! Hope’s Peak chose both of us!” Sonia’s smile was so innocent… Gundham’s face couldn’t help but fall, though._

‘Classmates… of course…’ _The breeder thought to himself in frustration, for getting his hopes up at all._

_Sonia hugged herself and her smile became a tad strained at seeing Gundham’s mood not improving._

_“But, that’s not all there is to it… You and I are more than just classmates…”_

_Gundham’s breathing came to a halt as he froze, staring at the Princess once more with shock and incredulity._

‘M-More than that…?!’

_“We are **friends**! The best of friends, don’t you think? We have learned so much about each other already!” Again… that innocent smile… Gundham could not get mad at her for it…_

‘Of… Of course we are friends… Why would I ever expect anything different…?’ _The breeder felt like kicking himself for getting his hopes up twice…_

_Sonia frowned in concern, apparently not content with his silence._

_“W-Well… aren’t you going to ask me?”_

_Gundham did a double-take. Again._

_“A-Ask you… what?” The breeder carefully phrased his question._

_“No, not what.” Sonia shook her head firmly. “Aren’t you going to ask if I have a beloved to who I am engaged?”_

_Gundham’s frown deepened, and he narrowed his eyes at the blonde, trying to find the meaning behind this conversation. He found none, just by looking at her blissfully smiling face. It’s not like he wasn’t curious, but…_

_“I suppose… it would not be outside the realm of possibilities…” Gundham answered cagily, preparing himself for the disappointment this time. “You are the **Dark Queen** , who is fated to rule her nation one day… It would be natural for you to be betrothed waiting for you…”_

_Sonia giggled gleefully at his response._

_“Mmhmhm! Bzzzzzt! I do not have a boyfriend, nor do I have anyone to whom I am betrothed! As future Queen, it is my sworn duty to find my fated beloved one day, and we shall hunt the Golden Makango together so that we may be married!” Sonia sighed dreamily again._

_Gundham, for some reason, felt a little more self-assured, this time._

_“Th… Then… Do you have someone that you are **interested** in…?” He couldn’t help but press the offensive while he could. He felt a little too… hopeful…_

_Sonia’s smile became all the more mysterious as a light pink dusted her face._

_“Hmhm… I wonder…? I think there may be someone here who has my attention~…”_

_Gundham choked on his own saliva a bit as she stared straight into his eyes, her cheeks tinged with red now._

‘M-Me…?!’ _The breeder thought to himself in disbelief. Sonia averted her gaze upward a little as she released another contented sigh._

_“Indeed… If it weren’t for you, Tanaka-kun, I would have succumbed to the devil in my heart that night!” Sonia confessed, easily enough. The smile on her face only seemed to grow bigger the more she talked, and the more she glowed, as a result. “So… I, I wanted you to at least know of my feelings. And I… can tell you have special feelings for me, as well! Even if we cannot be a lovey-dovey couple in the truest sense yet, I… I want us to take that step forward, if it is alright with you! Life is too long, as they say! I… I cannot fake my feelings. So please… take care of me, won’t you? Let us return to Novoselic together~!”_

_At that point, Gundham had checked out of the conversation, his brain short-circuiting from the rash confession on Sonia’s part, and just how **excited** she was… It really was too much for him, and he found himself wandering off after requesting time to process this confession. _

~*~

“A-And so I wandered aimlessly for a time…” Gundham coughed awkwardly, still bushing up a storm under his scarf. “Eventually I realized San-D had gone missing, and now here we… are…”

He still hadn’t given Sonia an answer. This whole thing was… much too sudden. Perhaps Kazuichi would provide some insight and make the world make sense again.

… That’s what Gundham was hoping for, at least. But the mechanic actually looked quite…. furious.

“You… **jerk**!!!”

~*~

Hajime dried his face off with a small towel and chugged a water bottle as Ibuki finally got them to where she wanted to go, initially… He hadn’t been expecting a vigorous run around Jabberwock Island, when he woke up that morning. And he certainly hadn’t been expecting to be roped into a band, unofficially or not…

Thank God they were at the music studio now, though. The AC was a balm on his soul.

“H-Hey, Ibuki…?” Hajime asked, after he’d recovered his voice enough to continue their discussion from after they’d left the hotel grounds.

Ibuki tilted her head cutely as she picked up some nearby drum sticks and impulsively tapped them together.

?Yeah? Yeah? What’s up, Hajimeme~?”

The brunet sweatdropped at the nickname.

“Um… Are you sure you want me to be in your… band? I know you said all that running was supposed to help with music theory, but, uh… I feel more frazzled than enlightened…”

Ibuki pouted moodily at the brunet.

“What are you saying? There's no way you could go through a live performance if you get winded by something like this.”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Well, that’s what I… kinda mean… Do you usually train like this all the time?”

“Ibuki doesn't do it for training. Running is Ibuki's hobby!” The musician only added onto his confusion.

_‘I thought this was training so I could learn proper music theory...?’_ Hajime thought to himself, mystified.

Ibuki tapped the drumsticks together rhythmically, grinning cheerfully as she swayed back and forth.

“Ibuki also likes playing one-person tag and one-person hide and seek too! It's a lot of fun! Have you ever found an eight-leafed clover by the riverbank? It's seriously sooooo hard, Ibuki definitely can't find one at all.” Ibuki briefly crouched on the floor and sulked.

“W-Well… eight-leafed clovers don’t exist…” Hajime muttered, and of course was disregarded by the musician, who was onto the next thing.

“Also, it's fun to play a game called, ‘Will I Get There?’. It's super thrilling!  
Ibuki forgets lots of stuff really fast, so she tries to write memos for important things...” Ibuki moved both drumsticks to one hand as she whipped out a memo pad she had on her and waved it excitedly. “See?! See?! Ibuki wrote down Hajimeme is gonna be Ibuki’s drummer! It’s already decided!”

Hajime smiled wryly at the spontaneous decision.

“Decided, huh…?” He mumbled. The brunet was sort of getting the gist that this is what Ibuki meant when she said she was going to show him how to just… ‘do’ things. Well, it’s not like he minded, either way.

Ibuki went back to what she was talking about just a moment ago.

“But on days Ibuki plays that game, Ibuki goes outside without thinking about anything. When Ibuki does that... Surprise, surprise! No matter how long I'm out, Ibuki can't get back home! Ibuki just thinks of fun stuff all the time, and after Ibuki has taken a bunch of shortcuts and detours... Ibuki usually ends up somewhere Ibuki has never been before.” And Ibuki just kept going… “One time, Ibuki nearly walked onto a fishing boat and almost ended up in a foreign country! Ah, but sometimes Ibuki likes to spend time relaxing, too. The other day, Ibuki woke up in the morning with a powerful hankering to look at the stars. So Ibuki just waited all day till the stars came out!”

Hajime felt himself sweating again from just hearing the musician babble on about… anything and everything. There was no way he could keep up with her… But maybe…

“H-Hey, Ibuki… Could you give me those drumsticks?” He knew it was kind of a long shot. But if he just started doing the activity Ibuki initially wanted… Maybe that’d help give her some focus?

The musician stared down at the sticks in her hands before giggling mischievously.

“So, Ha-JI-me wants to skip to dessert~! Ibuki can rock with that!” She tossed the sticks at the dumbfounded brunet, and raced over to a table, where she’d left her favorite guitar on.

Hajime watched her a bit warily, but moved over to the drums and sat down. He was kind of expecting Ibuki to use a recorded soundtrack for him to try and drum to the beat to… But this looked like…

“Uh, Ibuki…?” Hajime asked carefully as the musician slung the guitar strap over herself and eagerly plugged it into a loudspeaker.

She turned to the brunet excitedly.

“This’ll be Ibuki and Hajime’s first jam session~! This is gonna be **great**!” The blue-haired girl cackled gleefully, and Hajime sweatdropped.

“P-Please tell me you’re not going to…” He trailed off as he was cut off.

Ibuki strummed the guitar with passion, it crackled over the loudspeaker noisily.

“IBUKI’S POP QUIZ TIME~!” The musician shouted at the top of her lungs. “Who wrote Ibuki’s lyrics and songs?! The answer isssssss… IBUKI DID IT ALL HERSELF!”

… That didn’t instill Hajime with confidence. That didn’t instill him with confidence **at all** … But… even so… even as Ibuki’s guitar playing overloaded his eardrums again… This time, he didn’t immediately shield his ears, despite the music being just as **unique** as it was the first time he’d heard it.

He couldn’t. Not with Ibuki’s expectant eyes and contented grin aimed at him. Taking a ragged breath, Hajime… tapped out a beat. He knew it wasn’t anything to write home about. But he knew he’d made the right choice when Ibuki perked up and… pumped up the volume… Was… Was his body **vibrating** to the music?!

Good god, what had he gotten himself into?!

~*~

Mukuro tilted her head as she was handed a controller.

“Time to show us what you’ve got, Muku-chan!” Chisa beamed supportively at the soldier, and gave her a thumbs-up.

Mukuro just stared as the countdown to the race began. Why was she even allowed to play when she didn’t know the controls? This was… vexing.

Beside her, the swordswoman had also been granted a controller, but even though she must have been just as lost, her face was perfectly blank and calm. Indeed, when the countdown reached zero and the race started in earnest, only two cars zipped and zoomed ahead, leaving the other two helplessly at the start of the track as the two players in question struggled to learn the controls as quickly as possible.

“Ah… I see…” Peko murmured suddenly, and indeed, her car seemed to finally leave the start of the track, ahead of Mukuro’s.

The soldier narrowed her eyes in response. This would not do. This could not be allowed. She could not be challenged so early on. Taking a deep, steadying breath as she closed her eyes, Mukuro calmed herself down and cleared away unnecessary thoughts. All her focus was trained on the game, and mastering the controls.

It took her a few moments, but she grasped the basics. Best of all… she had worked out a secret weapon. So when she eventually zipped around a corner ahead of Peko, Mukuro unleashed it with all her tactical might. Peko’s eyes widened as she received a shell to the face, point-blank. Her car spun out of control, and Mukuro reveled in her newfound power and might… And her secured 3rd Place standing.

Mukuro huffed impatiently at the result being made reality. Nanami and Yukizome-sensei had simply been too far ahead… But that was okay. This was merely the first round. **She would not lose again**.

The soldier paid no heed to the determined glare Pekoyama was shooting her, too engrossed in watching the countdown to the next race as it began in earnest.

“Wow, Ikusaba! You learn fast!” Yukizome giggled as the race started a bit more evenly this time. “You, too, Pekoyama! Wow. This is… This is pretty intense.”

The orange-haired woman had no idea. An unholy fire had entered both Mukuro and Peko’s eyes as they glared at the screen, both embodying a spirit that absolutely refused to lose this time. And indeed, the tricks and gimmicks got cheaper. Cars were smashed into walls, endless shells were launched…

“Again.” Mukuro and Peko barked simultaneously, once the second race had ended in Chiaki’s victory.

…. Peko had edged into second place… this time… But neither soldier nor swordswoman were happy with the result.

Chiaki hummed thoughtfully.

“I think you’re ready for the rainbow road…”

Chisa nervously laughed at Chiaki’s decision, having played on that track before, herself. It was the most dastardly track ever designed…. Oh. Chiaki’s face was serious. Not a single giggle escaped her lips.

… Uh-oh.

~*~

Unfortunately, all fun and games must come to an end… Apparently, Monokuma was itching to give them their next motive, so that evening he summoned everyone to Chandler Beach on Second Island.

As Hajime showed up, he bore witness to quite the peculiar sight… Chiaki and Mukuro. Glaring at each other. Though admittedly, Chiaki’s was far more pouty and innocent, with her puffed cheeks. In concern, he asked the girls what was wrong.

“… I shouldn’t have underestimated Ikusaba-chan.” The gamer brooded, still with puffy cheeks. Mukuro’s glare didn’t lessen.

“I still lost.” Mukuro grumbled moodily.

“You almost won, though.” Puffy face was still puffy. “I never get shelled.”

“I’ll just have to try harder, next time.” Mukuro deadpanned.

Hajime looked to Byakuya for explanation, but the heir shrugged nonchalantly.

“Ask them later, Hinata. It looks like he’s arrived.”

Following the heir’s extended pointed finger, Hajime sweatdropped as he saw the monochrome bear arriving to the beach in a small boat, manning a wheel while wearing a pirate hat...

A pirate… hat…

“Yohoho~!” Monokuma laughed, clutching his belly after he weighed anchor. “Ahoy, ya scurvy dogs! Long time no see~!”

Fuyuhiko deadpanned at the obnoxious bear.

“We saw you **yesterday** …” And that had been annoying in of itself, what with all that shit about “Future Foundation” and “World Ender”… it was enough to make his ears bleed from just remembering it.

Monokuma waved off the yakuza dismissively, then rubbed the back of his head bashfully. Byakuya narrowed his eyes, clenching a fist with determination.

“What is your game, this time? We won’t fall for your tricks again!”

Sonia also clenched her fists with determination, feeling obligated to speak up as well.

“Togami-kun is right! We will remain united this time!”

Nekomaru cracked his knuckles threateningly.

“I’ll make a bona fide team out of you guys, yet!”

The bear patted his belly contently, his ever-grinning face mocking them all.

“I was just thinking~… ‘Boohoo, you stole our memories!’ ‘Give them back, Monokuma-sama!’ ‘You shitty memory-stealing bastard, Monokuma-sama!’ It’s all I ever hear~!” Monokuma waddled to a cannon he had stationed on the deck, aimed out at them all. “Well, kiddos! Today I start fulfilling my promise~! I call this… **Message in a Bottle**!”

Just like the madman he was, Monokuma fired out sixteen glass bottles with what looked like documents in them out into the crowd of students and teacher. They each had a cork in them to keep the contents contained, and each bottle landed in each of their hands without any pain.

“Wh-What… What is this…?” Hajime asked carefully, not daring to open his bottle – in fact, he stared at his like it might explode.

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“It’s what it says on the tin, swashbuckleroo~! I have spent **my** day collecting these lost bottles at sea, y’know… And wouldn’t ya know it?! They’re messages from your **loved ones**! Isn’t that just the best news ya heard all day?”

Teruteru’s eyes dilated.

“M… Mama? Mama sent me a message?”

Mahiru placed her hands on her hips and glared reprovingly at the chef before aiming it at the bear.

“He’s… He’s obviously lying…! Why would they send stuff… so unreliably?!”

Monokuma shrugged uncaringly.

“You were shuffled off to Jabberwock Island, y’know. No phones, no computers… ET isn’t phonin’ home anytime soon, and your loved ones know that! Why not hear what they have to say after all these wasted years~?”

A vein popped on Fuyuhiko’s forehead as he raised a shaking clenched fist.

“Don’t… you… **fucking mess with me**!!!” The yakuza roared. “Why should I believe any shit you hand to me in a bottle?!”

Chisa nodded faintly, while still gripping the bottle in her hands a little too tightly.

“K… Kuzuryu-kun is right…! Th-This is obviously… a trap…”

Monokuma raised a paw, showing off his dark side mischievously. It somehow looked more ominous with the pirate hat on.

“To believe~… or not to believe~… **That** is the question, me chums! However~… Like all motives I’m assigning some conditions to this motive! First~! You cannot destroy these love letters from your precious people~! If you do, that will be treated as an assault against Headmaster Monokuma, and will be punished as such! Second… You **must** read these letters **tonight** ~! I’ll be watching you, so if you don’t wanna be tossed in a volcano tomorrow morning, ya better read these letters veeery closely~! Also, no sharing your letters ‘til you read them yourself. I worked hard to deliver these **to you** ~! So ya better show some appreciation~…” Monokuma patted his belly contently.

Hajime paled at the implications of all this. This bastard was… cornering them again… And so soon! What the hell was his endgame?!

“Why are you putting us through this?!” The brunet demanded heatedly. “What did we even do to you?!”

This started a chain reaction of outrage aimed at the bear, and he turned his back on them all, sighing disappointedly.

“Rather than waste your time on adorable Monokuma-sama, I think you should all focus on your loved ones~… They might just be the last things ya ever get from ‘em. Ya don’t know what ya have until it’s gone~! Yohohohohohohoho~!” Having spoken his peace, Monokuma returned to the wheel of his vessel and spun it like a madman. The boat got turned around, and he drifted off into the sunset.

… Monomi was tied to the front of the vessel, her mouth taped shut.

But Hajime and the others paid that no mind… They were too absorbed in staring at the bottles given to them, or giving each other wary glances.

This was not going to end well… If the first motive was bad… This second one was so much worse… So much worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nyohohohohohohoho~ Are we having fun yet? :3 
> 
> Don't you worry~ The motive is here, but we aren't moving to a murder. Not yet. We've got more FTE's and bonding to get to yet~ Not to mention it'd be sooo silly to just reveal the goodies everyone got in those bottles, right off the bat... We're building up that suspense until it pooooooops~ Round and round the mulberry bush~ :3
> 
> .... Plus, you all haven't had your fill of warm and fuzzies yet. I have not given you nearly enough diabetes. :3 :3 :3 
> 
> Just bear in mind these motives will be in the backs of everyone's minds~ :3 Some FTE's are gonna be muuuch more stressful~ The flood is still coming. n_______n


	15. Chapter 2, Part 3: The Writing's on the Wall

Hajime stared at the letter in his hands, brows knitted together. It was short, and not very warm… But it had been something.

_‘Hey, idiot… Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten Hope’s Peak. It’s where you belong, of course you wouldn’t forget. What was it you used to tell me? It’s lonely being left behind or some shit? If you don’t hurry, I’ll leave you in my dust. And I’m not looking back. I told you… The only way to make it in this world is to be Ultimate. It’s the only way you can feel proud of yourself. To stand on equal ground with other Ultimates, and not look up to them all the time… Well, even if you forgot, I haven’t. I’m going to be someone my brother can be proud of… So do whatever you want. Maybe I’ll see you around, dipshit. – Natsumi K.’_

The brunet’s nose scrunched together before he folded the letter as it had been initially. He then placed it on the table and looked out his window, out toward the hotel grounds, deep in thought. He didn’t remember this Natsumi person… She must have been someone he met after coming to Hope’s Peak. But even so, her words resonated within him… The frustrations of making something of your life, to know what his talent might have been…

Hajime rose up and flicked off the light switch to his cottage, before crawling into his bed and staring up at the ceiling listlessly.

Of course he understood. More than ever, he wanted to know what his talent was, and just what kind of life he had at Hope’s Peak… But murdering everyone else to achieve that and escape this island… He didn’t have **that** kind of resolve. That would make him a monster.

Hajime shifted over to his side and closed his eyes calmly. He wondered if he should ask anyone if the name ‘Natsumi’ rang a bell… Then again, what were the chances of that?

~*~

Next morning was bleak, rigid, and… tense. They gathered in the dining hall, as they knew Sensei was going to round them up if they didn’t… But very few could look around and meet the eyes of the others. Hajime couldn’t tell which was more prevalent – rage or fear. Whatever it was, uncertainty and unease was palpable enough to choke all of them.

Even if it wasn’t his place to know… He wanted to know what the others received. Because even Komaeda, who was supposed to be eating separately from them, was sitting with a tight, close-lipped expression as his face rigidly remained blank. Nekomaru was sitting by the luckster, arms crossed and eyes calmly closed as he frowned thoughtfully. From where he was sitting, Fuyuhiko looked tense and wound up enough to snap at the first sign of provocation. Mahiru appeared just as stony and upset; Mikan and Sonia had haunted looks about their faces. Teruteru, Kazuichi, and Ibuki looked scared and like they were willing to deny the whole situation all over again… Gundham, Byakuya, Peko, Chiaki and Mukuro seemed more composed like Hajime was, but the brunet knew that after the first murder, looks could be deceiving.

… Chisa was the last one to set foot in the dining hall, presumably to make sure no one was skipping out on the meeting. The orange-haired woman flashed an uneasy, yet determined grin at all of them as she came to a stop at her table.

“… Okay, you guys… Why don’t we just take a deep breath? It’s… It’s been a stressful past couple of days, and I know last night didn’t help. But that’s why… that’s why you have me, and you have each other, to make it through this! So why don’t we start sharing what’s on our minds, like we did yesterday?”

Fuyuhiko snorted derisively, curling a hand into a fist.

“Oh yeah, let’s have a share circle… I’m sure people won’t hoard secrets and use that against us later. Great plan!”

Chisa wilted at the yakuza’s doubts. She ran a hand through her hair uneasily, but mustered the best smile she could.

“I’m… I’m serious! Even if you don’t want to do it here in front of everyone, I’m willing to speak to each of you in private! Whatever you’re more comfortable with!”

Fuyuhiko furiously raised a pointer finger, and spittle flew out of his mouth as he snapped back waspishly.

“Are you fucking kidding me?! Don’t you get it yet? It’s over. Maybe we could’ve had a ‘peaceful island paradise’ if we all cooperated with each other, like you said, but those days are fucking over! A murder **happened**! And you wanna know why it happened? **Because nobody fucking trusted each other in the first place**! Not me. Not Nevermind. Not Souda. Not Tsumiki. Not Komaeda. And **especially you**!” He switched between pointing at both Byakuya and Chisa. His glare became more heated as he kept the finger outstretched. The heir weathered the yakuza’s scornful look much more easily, but Chisa looked crestfallen at the accusation. “Everyone gave **us** so much shit, and maybe it **was** deserved, but **what the hell did you two do**? Huh? You went around our backs, trying to smoke out a killer **quietly**. You never trusted us to handle it as a team!”

Chisa opened and closed her mouth in an attempt to defend their approach, but the arguments that sprang to mind sounded more like excuses to her, so she couldn’t help but stay quiet. Byakuya narrowed his eyes at the yakuza.

“Everything we did was for your safety. If we brought the letter to everyone’s attention, that would have spurred more restlessness and tension. Somebody might have tried to take matters into their own hands and gone on a witch hunt… Or worse, taken advantage of the opening to frame Komaeda for the murder.”

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched over his chest as he snarled, eyes boiling with frustration and righteous anger.

“ **That** … That’s the shit I’m talking about! You were scared shitless by a fucking **letter**! To you guys, anybody could have been the killer! So you treated us like glass, and look what happened! Owari died, Saionji got her ass executed, we **shattered**! **Now** you want to throw this friendship and Kumbaya crap back in our face?! Are we just a fucking joke to you assholes?!”

Mahiru crossed her arms and shot the yakuza her own scathing glare.

“Pretty high and mighty talk for the guy who never wanted us to get along! If you want to throw any stones in other people’s houses, make sure your own is in order, first!”

Fuyuhiko growled back gutturally, glaring daggers at the photographer.

“You want your fingers smashed?! This ain’t about high ground shit anymore! **We can’t trust each other**! How do we know anything we say here is the truth? How do we know anything we say won’t be used against us later? I say, tell whoever the fuck you want. As for me, I’ll do my own thing.” The yakuza turned to Yukizome-sensei rigidly, shoving his hands in his pockets, and glare softening the smallest amount. “Listen. I don’t blame you, as much as I’m pissed off. You had your reasons for handling things the way you did, but now you’ve gotta face facts. You can’t protect us anymore… not all of us. The bear got to us once, he’s gonna get to us again. I have to do what I have to do… Don’t take anything I do personally; you’re the last person I have a bone to pick with. Just… stay out of my way, and things’ll probably sort themselves out, and I’ll be out of your hair. Goodbye.”

With those chilling, foreboding words, the yakuza stormed out of the cafeteria. Chisa bundled her apron in her hands anxiously, staring after Kuzuryu, heartbroken.

“Kuzuryu-kun…!” Despite calling after him, she didn’t have the heart to stop him. Not with everyone else in just as much of a mess as the yakuza was…

Nekomaru started to get up from his seat.

“I can go get him; we shouldn’t just let someone walk out… Not during a time like this.” The team manager rumbled, brows knitted together in concern as he looked to Sensei. The orange-haired woman shook her head sadly.

“No… Let him go. I’ll… I’ll check on him later.” And she would. There was no way she’d just leave him alone, completely. She raised her hand to stop Nekomaru from fully standing up.

Peko stood up in his place.

“I’ll go with him. We need to make sure he doesn’t do something he’ll regret.” The swordswoman spoke calmly, but with a tone that brooked no argument.

Chisa mustered a weary grin.

“Th-Thanks, Pekoyama… I… He should have a friend, at least. I’m glad you’re in his corner. Keep the both of you safe!”

Peko nodded stiffly as she turned to go.

“Of course. Hold down the fort here.” Having spoken her peace, the silver-haired girl briskly departed.

Chisa scratched her cheek sheepishly and turned to everyone else that remained… Thirteen students.

“Now then… What do you guys want to do?”

~*~

Despite how earnestly she pleaded and offered to be a listening ear, everyone decided to split off by themselves, in pairs, or groups. The biggest one remained behind, consisting of Chisa, Sonia, Ibuki, Mahiru, and Mikan. Apparently, the musician had an idea to cheer everyone up, and she was just itching to share it as she told them to wait there and ran off to collect some things.

Not surprising, they sure didn’t have to wait long for Ibuki to get back with markers and what looked like stacks of cards or papers… Naturally, the whimsical girl sprawled them out on the table they’d since cleaned off, making one big mess again in one fell swoop…

Yet impressively, not a single item fell to the floor.

“What’s all this, Mioda?” Chisa tilted her head curiously as the musician placed her hands on her hips and gave a proud troll grin.

“Ibuki was thinking we needed another party up in here~!” Ibuki announced without preamble. Mikan raised a shaky hand uncertainly.

“A-Another party…? Th-The last one didn’t go so well, th-though…” The nurse mumbled, quickly retracting her hand and averting her gaze when Ibuki peered at her with the cock of her head.

“What are you saying?! Byakuya-chan threw a totes awesome partay!” Ibuki defended before raising her pointer finger passionately. “It had food, people, and everything but music and fire! Ibuki has her fire now! So we should totally throw another party and invite everyone~!”

Mahiru scratched her cheek nervously before looking down at the art supplies.

“Y-Yeah, but… after last time, people are gonna think something is up, and nobody will feel like relaxing… That defeats the whole purpose, doesn’t it…?”

Ibuki frowned with determination, hands clasped behind her back anxiously.

“But… But… But… Ibuki wants to eat more of Teruteru-chan’s food again! And the last one got interrupted by murder! It wasn’t Byakuya-chan’s fault…!” There was an earnest wish that Ibuki was clearly trying to convey with her words, and Chisa seemed to get it as she mustered the biggest smile she could.

“Well… Why don’t we compromise? I think a party, especially an all-nighter, is out of the question. But you can still put on a concert! I’ll approve of that, one hundred percent!” The teacher gave the musician a thumb’s up, which Ibuki giddily reacted to.

“R-Really?!Ibuki and Hajimeme can serenade you guys with our groovy music?!” Ibuki gushed, hopping about on alternating feet in excitement. Mahiru blinked, looking back up at the musician.

“Hinata can play?” She was slightly surprised, since the brunet didn’t seem the… musical type. Still, if Ibuki was giving him lessons, then maybe…

Ibuki winked flirtatiously.

“Eeheeheehee~! Ibuki and Hajime-chan’s secret training is totally gonna pay off~! You just watch us! We’ll rock you guys so hard, you’ll call us rockets~!”

Sonia hummed in interest.

“I can understand throwing a concert… But why have you decided to call us here, then? Is this what they call a girl’s night out?”

“It’s… it’s mid-morning, Nevermind-chan. So it’s more a ‘girl’s day out’, but I get what you mean…” The teacher sweatdropped and hummed thoughtfully, tapping her chin.

Ibuki raised a pointer finger passionately again.

“Ibuki has called you all here to help with the invitations~! Ibuki doesn’t wanna spend all day drawing these up herself! There’d be no Ibuki and Hajimeme honeymoon time!” The musician growled with cute determination, earning another round of sweatdrops from Chisa and Mahiru.

“So we’re here because you needed help with the smaller details…” Mahiru sheepishly chuckled a little. “Well, it’s not the worst way to spend an afternoon… Though I kind of wished you’d dragged some of the boys along, too. Would’ve made the work go by faster.”

“Byakuya-chan is way too important for small stuff like this, and Hajime-chan’s time is booked with Ibuki later!” Ibuki denied the photographer, to which the redhead scratched her cheek nervously.

That’s not who I… Well, okay, maybe I thought about them, since they’re pretty responsible… But Souda, Tanaka, Nidai, and even Hanamura wouldn’t hurt being forced to do some manual labor…”

Ibuki placed her hands on her hips and gave that troll grin again.

“The guys get the heavy-lifting with the loudspeakers~! Oh, but not Ibuki’s guitar… Nobody touches Ibuki’s guitar. That is for Ibuki’s hands only.” The tone of voice became so serious at the end, and Chisa just had to ask.

“But… doesn’t that studio have a lot of guitars? How would they know which is your special guitar?”

Ibuki raised a pointer finger passionately.

“All instruments hanging on the wall can eventually be smashed at the end of shows! But Ibuki’s guitar is unique, and Ibuki leaves it on Ibuki’s table at all times so Ibuki never forgets where she left it!”

“… What makes it so different from the other ones?” Chisa wondered, honestly looking befuddled by the whole ordeal.

Sonia’s eyes sparkled, slamming her hands down on the table passionately.

“Mioda’s guitar is amazing~! She plays it, and fire can shoot out of it! It is much better than a fireworks display, because it can last much longer! It looks like a shining stream of lava against the night sky~!”

Chisa, Mahiru, and Mikan stared, ghastly pale, at both Ibuki and Sonia in fear and trepidation. For one, Sonia’s description sounded horrifying, and two… it sounded like Ibuki basically had a flamethrower. … That was also a guitar. A flamethrower-guitar.

Who made something like that?! And more importantly… why was Chisa only hearing about this now?

“Togami-kun’s upcoming safety seminar makes a lot more sense, now…” The orange-haired woman muttered, brow furrowed. “… But I’m sorry, Mioda, we can’t let you keep that…. It’s too dangerous…”

Ibuki whined, crossing her arms and pouting, looking at Chisa like a kicked puppy.

“Byakuya-chan said Ibuki could keep it! Ibuki just has to attend the mandatory safety thingamajig and lock up the music studio every night! Byakuya-chan prooooooomised!” The musician whined some more, pout growing more pronounced.

Chisa blinked owlishly.

“The music studio can lock up?”

Sonia tilted her head at her Sensei curiously.

“Apparently, most buildings can be locked up on Second Island. Monomi gave me the key to the embassy, Tsumiki has the key to the pharmacy, Hanamura has the key to the diner, and Mioda has the key to her studio… Togami-kun thought it was a wise idea to spread the keys out as such, so not one person has access to all the buildings at any one time. I agreed with him wholeheartedly.”

Chisa hummed as she absorbed that information. It made sense. She honestly would’ve done the same thing, in the heir’s shoes. Give the kids some responsibility. Still…

“While I’m happy you’re gonna lock up at night, please also lock up when you’re not there, Mioda! That goes for you, too, Tsumiki. I don’t like cracking the whip on you guys and getting serious, but we’ve gotta be careful with those places.” Especially now. A murderer could still get supplied with a weapon somehow, but that didn’t mean they had to giftwrap a flamethrower to them on a silver platter, or drugs for knocking people out…

Chisa frowned thoughtfully. She’d definitely have to take stock of that pharmacy with Tsumiki soon. Lives were on the line.

“Aww, you worry too much~!” Ibuki waved the housekeeper off causally, winking. “Ibuki will be careful~! Byakuya-chan made Ibuki promise that before signing off on Hajime-chan’s waiver to be Ibuki’s bandmate~!”

“I-I’ll do my best!” Mikan squeaked, eyes shut tight as her fists shook with determination.

Mahiru frowned, still not totally satisfied with this outcome.

“… I still say some of the boys could have helped.”

Ibuki waved her off, too.

“Nah~! This kind of work needs a girl’s touch! The invitations should look like this, and there’s no way boys can copy Ibuki’s style~!” The musician held up an example of the invitation she wanted them all to make, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

… Well, at least it was colorful. And at least Sonia and Mikan were eager in their own ways to help…

~*~

Hajime wasn’t really sure what brought him to Second Island. He didn’t have a destination in mind, or anybody that he was meeting up with. He just… wandered. At first he leaned toward Chandler Beach or the embassy, but then he found himself pulled in the opposite direction, toward the library and ruins.

And as his eyes lingered on the ruins, he found his legs working on autopilot. He supposed the destination chose him. Not only was the building itself an enigma, and whatever lied within, but the writing etched on the front of it was… peculiar to him.

Wish-lined parities… Just what was that supposed to mean? Sensei had explained ‘parities’ referred to the state or condition of being equal, especially regarding pay or status. … So what was the ‘wish-lined’ part supposed to mean? How did that factor into parities? Was it about their own situation on Jabberwock Island?

More importantly… who even wrote that? Monokuma? Monomi? The organization behind them? The previous inhabitants of Jabberwock Island? Hajime didn’t know the answer to any of these questions… But he supposed he could get another look at the giant metal door and see if there was any other writing or clues that might provide enough context to explain some of those things…

“Why, hello there, Hinata!”

… Damnit. He was not ready for a meeting with this guy. Talk about a chance encounter…

Yeah. Yeah, a random encounter like this was actually believable. Ultimate Luckster and all.

“H-Hey, Komaeda…” Hajime scratched his cheek, and looked away from the white-haired boy who was so casually waving his hand as he stood by the thick iron door guarding the ruins.

… He tried pushing more words out, small talk even, but they wouldn’t come. He ended up staring at Nagito, choking in uncertainty and unease. So much for that ‘just do’ training that Ibuki put him through, yesterday…

Nagito chuckled warmly, despite the lackluster greeting.

“Ah, you don’t have to force yourself, Hinata-kun. I was just on my way out. Please, take all the time you need!”

As the luckster half-bowed like a showman and gestured at the big iron door, he began to walk off without so much as another word. Somehow, that was enough to help Hajime with his indecision and call out to the white-haired boy’s retreating back.

“H-Hey…! Hold on a minute! You’re here because of the writing, too, aren’t you? Did you figure something out?” Despite what feelings he had about the luckster’s machinations, he had to acknowledge Nagito had a sharp intelligence. If he had worked anything out, then Hajime was willing to hear him out. It beat just wracking his own brain and coming up blank…

Nagito turned back around and arched an eyebrow curiously.

“What’s this? Now you want to hear me out? But I doubt whatever I have to say will be of much use to you, Hinata. After all, I’m certain that with your mysterious talent, you must have worked it out on a deeper level than I have. You don’t need to humor garbage like me.”

Hajime’s frown deepened at that.

“I haven’t worked anything out… that’s why I came to inspect the door again. I figured there might have been a clue that I missed, the first time around.”

Nagito shook his head slowly.

“There isn’t. I’ve gotten a good, long, hard look already. The door is exactly as it appears, no hidden tricks or gimmicks. No hidden messages. Just a Future Foundation door, with ‘wish-lined parities’ written on it… No more, no less.”

Hajime clenched a fist in aggravation and gritted his teeth.

“There has to be **something** we’re missing…! I just… I just have this feeling!”

Nagito hummed noncommittally.

“Well… You really shouldn’t mind trash like me, Hinata. It’s not like I have any further insight than you. Although… We could try thinking about alternative messages that it could translate to…” The luckster laughed nervously and held up his hands peacefully. “Ah! Don’t mind me… I’m just thinking out loud. I’m certain you’ve at least thought about the possibility, too…”

“Alternative messages…” Hajime muttered, brow furrowing. “You mean like… different connotations of the words? Or, no… The way you’re talking about it… Do you think it might be an anagram?”

Nagito shrugged lazily, stroking his chin in thought as he stared down at the ground.

“Who can say? Certainly not me. I’m not nearly exceptional enough to speculate on something that mystifies even Ultimates. Again, feel free to think about it on your own. I won’t bother you with my presence any further.”

Hajime grimaced as the luckster began to turn away again. Apparently he’d need to confront this sooner rather than later, after all.

“Komaeda…wait. If this is about the trial and how we ostracized you… I’m sorry I wasn’t a better friend. I let my emotions get to me, and I stayed upset. I still don’t approve of what you did… I don’t even understand your reasoning after you explained it… But I overreacted. I’m sorry.”

Nagito paused midstep and he arched an eyebrow at Hajime again, curiously.

“Hmm? Now why are you apologizing for something like that, Hinata? Do I seem angry?” The luckster waved lazily, giving off a carefree grin. “It has nothing to do with you at all! If anything, you’re the last person I’d be mad at – well, you and Ikusaba, I mean. I’m sorry if I allowed my personal frustrations to get the better of me and give you the wrong impression. Although I must confess, your change of heart has me curious about what brought it on. Are you perhaps thinking of doing **something** to me? That’s wonderful. I’m totally up for it. I don’t mind at all.”

Hajime clenched his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, averting his head a little.

“Don’t mess with me! I… I’ll never go along with your plans!”

“That’s a problem.” Nagito chuckled lightly. “I don’t want you guys to lose sight of yourselves because you doubt and hate me. I just want to see you guys embody Hope!”

Hajime frowned in slight concern as that last line came up again.

“There it is again... What in the world is this **Hope** you keep talking about...? What are you planning to make us do...?” His brow knitted together in confusion as he cupped his chin and stared down at the ground.

Nagito looked off to the side, disheartened.

“Oh...why am I so misunderstood? I just want to believe in hope, you know?” He then shot Hajime a disarming grin. “You should think about it seriously for once. What do you think Hope is?”

Hajime’s eyes narrowed in thought.

_‘Hmm… He’s right… I’ve never actually given it much thought… Hope… For him, Hope is…’_ Out loud, he asked with a raised eyebrow. “Hope is… absolute good?”

Nagito nodded sagely, raising an index finger astutely.

“That's right! That's exactly it! And you guys have the potential to embody it... Do you understand? Hope is a positive force... Everything created by it is an absolute **good**! As long as the seeds of hope have been planted, I will gladly kill someone... or be killed in return. The fact that I'm alive right now is already Hope!”

Hajime gnashed his teeth in frustration and clenched a fist as he clenched his eyes shut tight again.

_‘It’s no use… Right now, I just… I don’t understand his perspective! But… I guess I can at least say, he’s not doing any of this out of selfish desires…’_ The brunet stared down at the ground with genuine concern. _‘That makes this… all the more troubling.’_

Nagito tilted his head curiously.

“Huh? Are we done talking, Hinata? That's disappointing...but we can still talk anytime, right? After all, we're both friends who yearn for hope!”

Hajime blinked and looked up at the luckster in slight shock.

“Huh? Well… yeah. Of course. I’m not just giving up here – I just… don’t get you at all. As your friend, I kinda feel it’s my responsibility to at least try to understand.” And that was the truth.

Nagito clapped his hands together a couple of times, barely containing his excitement.

“I look forward to it! It takes guts to investigate things you don’t understand!” As they parted ways, the luckster couldn’t help thinking snidely to himself. _‘Although, I wonder will that ‘friendship’ hold if your curiosity is ever satisfied? Show me your resolve, Hajime Hinata… That is what **I’m** most curious in…’_

Because in the end… who could truly claim to be a friend to scum like him? Ultimates certainly were cruel, living up in their ivory towers and staring down at the ‘incomprehensible’ masses…

~*~

Byakuya frowned as he watched the brunet and luckster leave the ruins. Beside him, he could tell the soldier was itching to follow them – though it looked like she would have to choose which one to shadow.

“You’re not ready to talk to Komaeda yet, Ikusaba… Leave him to me. Keep an eye on Hinata.”

Mukuro’s brow knitted together in confusion – Byakuya would’ve said it looked like worry or concern as well, but the soldier wasn’t quite there yet. Her face was too neutral for that.

“Are you sure? Komaeda-kun seems… volatile.” Moreso than he usually was, and she and the Togami heir both knew it.

Byakuya smirked arrogantly, keeping his arms crossed as he closed his eyes.

“Who do you think you’re talking to, Ikusaba? I can handle Komaeda – I am one of the exceptional few who can. Just watch over Hinata, and keep his spirits up. This is what you can do, Ikusaba. I believe in you.” The heir then turned his back and departed.

Mukuro stared down at the Fenrir tattoo on her hand and murmured softly to herself.

“Something… I can do…?” She could hardly believe it, herself. She figured dealing with Komaeda was her responsibility, since she had followed him so blindly at first.

… But something about the heir’s words, his profound trust, made her shell of a heart flutter.

~*~

“That… That **bitch** … That **fucking bitch** …!” Fuyuhiko snarled, hands still gripping the by long crumpled and worn paper in his hands. He slammed it down on the table and began his pacing anew, hands balled into fists at his side.

Peko tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and frowned.

“I understand how you feel, Young Master… It **is** a grave insult to the Kuzuryu Clan…”

Fuyuhiko whirled on her, exploding venomously.

” **Fuck that**! This isn’t about clans or honor or any of that **bullshit**! If all of that shit is true…” The blond pointed at the paper lying on the table before his hands twitched furiously over his chest. “Then… that bitch is an accessory to **Natsumi’s murder**! Those other two bitches can be bystanders or whatever, I don’t give a shit! **That** fucking bitch, though… She knew what the hell she was doing! Hiding evidence so that the damn morons running the police wouldn’t find the murderer… She damn well **knew** …! **I can’t let that go**!”

As he screamed, spittle flew out of his mouth and landed near Peko’s feet. She made no attempt to avoid it, standing rigidly on the spot like it was her post.

“I… completely agree, Young Master.” Peko reaffirmed her stance, her face remaining coldly stoic. “I am sorry for upsetting you. I did not mean to imply her crime was any less severe than what you just described… I will abide with whatever you decide, Young Master. If you will it, I will cut down Mahiru Koizumi personally. Giving up my life for your need to avenge Mistress Natsumi’s death… I could ask for no higher honor.”

That seemed to take the wind out of Fuyuhiko’s sails. He took a step towards the swordswoman and reached for her shoulder, but halted, knowing how… odd that might make Peko feel. He clenched his eyes shut and ground his teeth.

“Oi, Peko… Remember. Our professional relationship **doesn’t exist here**. Murdering Koizumi… that’s **my** job, if that’s what it comes to! I’m just… I’m just a burden to you at this point. A reminder of a life you don’t have anymore.”

Peko narrowed her eyes critically.

“Nonsense. I have never felt more compelled to preserve your life and eliminate potential threats to you! Koizumi has… She has signed her own death warrant. Simply give the order, and her life is forfeit.”

“ **Cut that out**!” Fuyuhiko barked in aggravation, hands loosening his tie around his collar nervously. “L-Look… If you want some damn orders, just… I don’t know. Just go hang out with the others for the day. I’ll be fine. Maybe… Maybe she won’t be worth my time.”

“You are going to meet her alone?” Peko raised her voice authoritatively, and the blond snapped at her in annoyance.

“I already called her out, so yeah…! Stay the hell away, Peko! For **just** today…!” He walked over the door of his cottage before looking back at the silver-haired woman with narrowed eyes. He gripped the door handle. “Don’t follow me. This is between me and Koizumi! Just… Just spar with Nidai, or find one of the girls to hang out with… Please. Just stay out of this.”

The yakuza’s voice was weary, and pleading. He yanked the door open and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

… The blond had to know this was one instance where Peko would be unable to follow his ‘orders’. They both knew it…

~*~

Sonia frowned thoughtfully as she entered the shop. This was honestly her first time visiting, ever since she had initially stopped by to pick up her scooter. As pungent as it was here – remaining too long was not an option – she needed to stop by. The person she needed to see appeared to be quick on the uptake; for he dropped whatever he was working on over by a workbench, and excitedly ran straight over to her.

“Sonia-san~! I-I didn’t know you’d be stopping by! D-Did something happen?” His excitement gave way to dread and anxiety. Sonia beamed sheepishly and shook her head, hands clasped in front of her waist.

“No, no… I merely needed to stop by. It has actually been some time since I have seen you, outside of morning meetings and ‘Monokuma business’. You did miss the tour, the other day…” She murmured, delicately raising one hand to her mouth while averting her gaze slightly.

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Y-Yeah… I guess you could say I’ve been working like a dog… You and Togami wanted me to work on that stuff, right? I can’t let you guys down…!”

“Working is appreciated, but you should not be overtaxed while the rest of us are not.” Sonia refuted, slightly. She clenched her fists in determination, puffing up like a bird a little. “I demand you take a day off so that you may relax! No, I decree it! This is an order!”

Kazuichi blinked owlishly at the forceful tones she was using towards the end. He scratched the top of his head and frowned in concern.

“N-Not that I’m complaining, but… What brought this on?” Sonia-san barely gave him the time of day. As much as he adored her, he had to acknowledge that much.

That seemed to cut to the heart of the matter of Sonia’s visit, and she appeared vulnerable as she averted her gaze again.

“W-Well… I… That is… I-I heard that you and Gundham had an argument recently…”

Kazuichi scowled at the reminder and half-turned back to his workbench in aggravation.

“Y-Yeah… uh… I think I remember something like that happening… Listen, I’d better get back to work. I should have your guys’ cell phones by the end of today, so…” He trailed off before uncomfortably marching back to the workbench. He shivered at Sonia’s authoritative, yet pleading tones, and he froze in his tracks when she spoke.

“F-Friends should not fight…! Please! If you must be angry with anyone, be furious with me! I-I am the one who put Gundham in such a position…! Please do not hate him!”

Kazuichi squeezed his eyes shut in anguish, but kept his back to the Princess.

“I-I’m not… I don’t **hate** the guy… I just…” He took a breath and turned to face Sonia with a solemn expression that surprised even her. The corner of his mouth tugged down in a frown. “Maybe that was my excuse at first. I blew up at him, and I just… Sonia-san. How’m I supposed to just… let my feelings go? It’s not just something I can do at the drop of a hat, y’know! I… I love you, damnit!”

Sonia felt her heart ache, watching he tears stream down the mechanic’s cheeks as he gritted his teeth.

“Souda…” She murmured softly.

He wiped the tears away with one of his sleeves and kept his gaze pinned on the ground after that.

“I know I’m being stupid, and it’s not fair to you, or me, or Tanaka… I just…” He sniffed before looking up at her again seriously. “Look. Forget about me and all this crap between me and Tanaka… Just, be honest with me, Sonia-san. Does he make you happy?”

Sonia clenched a hand over her heart and looked to the floor anxiously.

“… He does…” She uttered quietly, but earnestly. Kazuichi shook his head slowly and half-turned away again.

“Then… that’s good enough for me, Sonia-san. That’s all… I ever really wanted.” He wiped furiously at his eyes with his sleeve again and clenched his fists in anguish. “I’ll stop getting in your guys’ way. I’ll apologize later to Tanaka, and that’ll be that. So… don’t worry. Okay, Sonia-san?”

Despite the mechanic’s request, Sonia did… worry. Her eyes reflected that as he turned his back on her again.

“But what about you, Souda-kun? What will you do from now on?”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head before slouching in defeat.

“I’ll probably just… give you guys your space. You don’t need a nuisance like me around.”

“You are not…!” Sonia was unable to finish that sentence before shaking her head desperately. “You are our friend, Souda-kun! Gundham has already decided as such! And… And so have I!”

Kazuichi chuckled somewhat bitterly, turning his head slightly to look at her out of the corner of his eye.

“Funny, I haven’t really felt welcome… Least, not by you. Chalk it up to my forwardness, I guess. I was way too forward and annoying.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Tanaka’s who you want and need, Sonia-san. That murder from a couple days ago taught me… You really need to just… go for it. Tell Tanaka you love him, and don’t stop loving him. ‘Cause life’s too short, and things happen. If anyone makes it out of this… I hope you two do, at least.”

Kazuichi nearly jumped out of his skin at feeling a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around, and was thrown for a loop even more when Sonia wrapped him in a bear hug, resting her head on his shoulder consolingly.

“Your blessing means… more than you can possibly imagine, Souda-kun.” Sonia promised, surprising him further by keeping the hug going strong. “I… I do love Gundham. I’ll never stop. B-But I… I do not want to lose your friendship, either. I would hate… to lose either of you...”

Awkwardly, the mechanic returned the blonde’s hug, massaging her back in slow circles.

“W-Well, consider us a team, then…! T-Tanaka and I won’t abandon you! Honest! We’ll make it through this!”

Sonia’s eyes fell do the floor as she pressed her cheek into Kazuichi’s shoulder and held him tight.

… She wished she could be certain of that.

~*~

Hajime really wanted to know what was up with his karma today. He was happy to be on semi-decent terms with Komaeda again, but he really needed more time to understand that guy before he would feel comfortable around him…

Here was a second troubled individual that worried him…

“U-Um… Did I do something wrong again…?” Mikan mumbled, anxiously poking her fingers together. She didn’t look to have expected to bump into him, either.

That’s what he got for mindlessly walking around Second Island, he supposed… They found each other between the pharmacy and the embassy, which would explain why Mikan was around here, actually. The brunet had been too much in a daze to properly notice.

Hajime scratched his cheek nervously.

“N-No, no… Actually, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to hang out and get to know you a little better.” He was being honest here. After the first murder and all that came with it, he felt bad the nurse had been caught up in any of that. She looked so fragile.

Mikan tensed up, staring at him in shock as she squeaked.

“E-Eh…? Y-You want to hang out? W-With me?”

Hajime nodded easily enough in agreement.

“Y-Yeah… Is that okay?”

Mikan blushed lightly, raising one hand to her cheek faintly.

“I see... I'm glad...U-Um... If you would like to talk, I don't really know what everyone likes yet... Well, um...there might be lots of things I'm not good at doing, but...I'll do anything so please let me know!” She squeaked out desperately.

Hajime’s brow furrowed.

“D-Do anything…?” Why was he getting goosebumps, along with a general feeling she was deadly serious…?

“Of course! I’ll do anything!” Mikan reaffirmed, nodding quickly.

“H-Hey… I don’t think you should say something like that so freely…” Hajime gently advised her, but that only made the nurse tilt her head in confusion.

“Huuuh? Why? I mean...before we even arrived here, everyone else didn't seem to mind. For fun, I tried eating strange bugs, and I let them use my body when there wasn't anything else to write on. Also, I had to be responsible for debts, and be the target for dart games, so...” The nurse giggled to herself… there was a slightly unhinged quality to it. “Hmhmhm, I'm pretty useful, you know.”

_‘Hey, hey… That doesn’t sound like a joke at all…’_ Hajime’s frown deepened, rubbing his chin and choosing his words with care. “How...can you be smiling when you were forced to do stuff like that...? Do you actually enjoy it?”

Mikan shook her head slowly, eyes falling to the ground miserably.

“Obviously, I don't want to do that stuff at all. But... if it makes everyone not hate me and smile at me, then it's much better... Heh… Hehehehehe…”

Hajime grimaced and averted his gaze a little.

_‘I feel this profound concern… Why… is she like this…?’_

Mikan faintly brought a hand to her cheek again and blushed lightly.

“U-Um...Hinata...? Um... um... Would you like to try it out, too? Doodling is very fun. Please draw on me wherever you like! U-Um... Also...I'm good at pretending to be a pig. I'll do it... I'll do it right now... Just please don't look at me like that...!” The nurse wailed, clasping her hands together anxiously as she stared at him.

Hajime shook his head to clear his thoughts and placed a consoling hand on her sholder, feeling bad when he felt her jump under his touch.

“H-Hey… Tsumiki, let’s try to calm down, yeah? I’m not gonna do anything to you. I don’t want to.”

Instead of consoling her, this seemed to only further distress the nurse.

“Eeeeeek?! B-B-B-But… if-if you don’t **use** me for anything, th-that means I’m w-w-worthless to y-you, right…? P-P-Please don’t ignore my existence…!” She pleaded tearfully.

Hajime recoiled at the overreaction before schooling his features again, knowing the impact his reactions had on her now.

“N-No… That’s not what I meant, I promise. I just… want to have a normal conversation, okay? You don’t have to… **do** anything for me, because I’m your friend. Just being able to hang out with you is enough.” He still wasn’t sure if he’d get through to her, but… after the rollercoaster with Komaeda earlier, he was determined to make things straight with Mikan. He wasn’t going to just run away, even if part of him leaped to that as an option…

Mikan quivered as his hand comfortingly remained on her shoulder.

“Wh-Wh-Why…? F-Friends d-d-do things for each other… Th-That’s wh-what m-my… Th-That’s what m-my Beloved said!”

Hajime blinked owlishly as he squeezed her shoulder comfortingly.

“Your… Beloved?” He echoed.

Shakily, Mikan withdrew the piece of paper from her apron pocket, and held it out to Hajime, looking ever so vulnerable as she did so. Hajime accepted it reluctantly, and unfolded the paper.

… Oh. Ohhh.

What had he gotten himself into…? Looking over at the quailing, frightened nurse who silently implored him to keep reading… Hajime felt just awful for this poor girl. His hand clenched tightly around the paper as his eyes darted back down to read the letter ‘til the very end.

He would definitely be doing what he could to help Mikan… This just made him feel like the worst friend ever, and he barely knew this poor girl. No one should have to endure a ‘special someone’ as awful as this… Whoever this person was, they hadn’t signed their name anywhere.

Suddenly, he wasn’t very angry with Komaeda anymore…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't get to a few scenes that I wanted to get to for Free Time Events.... Hajime-Chiaki, Hajime-Ibuki, Hajime-Chisa-Mukuro, Kazuichi-Gundham, Byakuya-Nagito, Chisa-Nagito.... Just to name a few. XD
> 
> .... Thankfully, we've got a couple more weeks for me to squeeze those in. The stuff I got to this week tugged at my heart strings, so... See you guys next weekend. :3
> 
> *New section to AN's: Comment of the Week*
> 
> So, I've seen a Youtuber do a 'Comment of the Day', and that got me to thinking, how can I spoil you guys a little more each week? .... By rewarding one random commenter by giving 'em a shoutout for any hilarious or insightful comment, my tastes are wide. Literally anyone has a chance here, and I just wanna spoil you guys a bit. :3 I'll also try to pick a different person each week, at least as much as possible, to give everyone that fair shot. I just really love hearing from you guys~
> 
> This week's comment: 
> 
> "Last time Hiyoko played some video games and she ended up committing murder... obviously the next murderer will be Peko, Mukuro, Chisa, or Chiaki. Video games really do cause violence. Chiaki is the true ultimate despair 😔." - Bobb
> 
> Reason: That just made me crack up, really. You have a point, Bobb, video games DO cause violence~ Chiaki = True Ultimate Despair, indeed. It's always the quiet ones, isn't it? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	16. Chapter 2, Part 4: The Writing's on the Wall

Hajime chuckled nervously as he set the handheld console in his lap and stretched his arms lazily.

“Demolished me again… You really are the Ultimate Gamer. I’m just no match for you.”

“Your focus is all over the place, that’s why you lost.” Chiaki mused with a small frown, taking the time between games to look up at the brunet with curious eyes. “Did something happen today?”

Hajime leaned back and stared up at the ceiling of the hotel’s lobby, lost in thought. Did something happen…? Of course, stuff did… Between Nagito and Mikan, his mind was on a lot of things. That didn’t even get into the looming motive that had everyone on edge… Or the fact he still had no idea what his Ultimate talent might be. Maybe he could pick Chiaki’s brain, a little.

“Hey, Nanami…? If you, like… sucked at video games… Would you still bother to play ‘em?”

“… I wanna know how bad I would be.” Chiaki decided after a beat, and she began playing a solo round by herself while Hajime took a small break.

“Like, if you lost no matter how much you played one… or the puzzles never made any sense… Would things still be fun for you, if that were the case?” The brunet elaborated.

“Hmm…” The gamer hummed softly, never losing a beat with the game she was playing. “Even if I were horrible, I think I’d love them. That’s how great they are!”

Hajime’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“But what if someone else was the Ultimate Gamer? And every time, they left your score in the dust?”

“There’s more to life than just talent…” She didn’t look up from her game, but she could feel Hajime’s surprised eyes on her. “Yukizome-sensei likes to tell us stuff like that all the time, remember? She says talent’s never a guarantee of an interesting life. Making memories with other people leads to hope… And hope is way more important than ability, in the long run! The long time we spend together playing these games…? I… like it…”

Hajime blinked owlishly as he thought over the girl’s logic, again. Now that he thought about it from that angle… Yeah, she was right. He mostly blamed Nagito, but up until now hope was this big mystery box that was supposedly ‘absolute good’… He’d tried thinking about how Nagito possibly defined hope, just to understand him better… And in the end, he only became more confused and disoriented.

Thanks to Chiaki, it came into focus for him. Hope came from friendship, from having a good time. If people can find happiness in their abilities, that’s great; but ultimately, it’s even better when you can share that happiness with others… That’s why bonding and memories are superior to talent. If you have a talent, it’s best to find ways to use that to connect to others… Because that’s the way to finding enjoyment and fulfillment in life.

… That did make Nagito all the more perplexing, though. Because Nagito was willing to go to such extremes as killing to find a ‘brighter hope’… The brunet supposed he’d think more on the luckster later.

“Yeah, me too…” Hajime whispered in awe. “Yeah, this is great fun!”

“In that case, let’s keep going!” Chiaki beamed at him, completing her solo run.

Hajime blinked owlishly.

“H-Huh…? But my thumbs are toast! Can’t we switch it up for a little bit?”

Chiaki stared at the brunet with fiery determination.

“No way! You’re finally ready for the world of co-op!”

Hajime nodded nervously, and they resumed their game together.

“Y-Yes, ma’am! Ready!” The brunet drifted off into his thoughts again, but this time with more optimism. _‘Even without talent, there’s hope… Maybe things are finally starting to look up!’_

Naturally, he said that… And while he was feeling much more assured and confident about something as vague as hope, that still didn’t get into precisely what was to be done about Mikan… He was definitely going to be there for her from now on. But in this case, he just wasn’t satisfied with that simple game plan… Mikan deserved better. That “Beloved” of hers was trying to steer her down some pretty dangerous lines of thinking, and simply pointing out the shameless manipulation was not going to end well.

Mikan was convinced that this mysterious person loved her… She wasn’t going to just let this “Beloved” go. So what could Hajime do? The short answer: Be there for her, show her what love really looks like. The long answer? Well… Hajime still needed to figure that out.

Maybe he should talk to Mahiru and try to bounce ideas off of her. She’d been spending ample time with the nurse, after all…

~*~

Nagito’s mouth thinned as he noticed someone approaching him out of the corner of his eye, from where he was sitting in a secluded area of the library. That frown quickly morphed into a faux smile when he recognized the individual in question, and he waved lazily at the portly teen.

“Ah, Togami-kun! What a splendid coincidence running into you here. May I be of help?”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes as he came just a few feet shy of the luckster, crossing his arms as he remained standing. So, he hadn’t been mistaken when he was listening earlier… This would be arduous.

“Komaeda, I am not the Class Rep now. I have formally surrendered authority to Nevermind and Yukizome-sensei. I am just a classmate now; an acquaintance.” The heir stated all of this with conviction, for the purpose of assuaging the luckster and any ire he might have.

… Unfortunately, his words did not have their intended effect. Komaeda’s smile became strained as he kept his eyes closed and barked out a short laugh.

“How modest, Togami-kun! Except I would be remiss in considering you as the same level as me… After all, I don’t have a mighty empire to return home to. You don’t have to spare **my** feelings – I’m well aware of my place.”

Byakuya’s scowl deepened. Self-deprecating to the point Komaeda used it as a double-edged sword to impale others on it… How bitter of him.

“In case you forgot, Komaeda, we are all in the same situation.” The heir pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Even if you yourself do not see it that way, things like status and power are all washed away, on this island. I have no more resources than you do; no perks, no benefits. We are classmates, and if you would allow it… we could be friends.”

Nagito scoffed at the blond’s counterargument. Was he really arrogant enough to think that way? Well, he wouldn’t be surprised… Byakuya Togami had the birthright to be so cruelly condescending.

“Togami-kun, power and prestige don’t simply **vanish** because of a handful of bad days!” The luckster snapped, taking a pompous stance, himself. “You are still **Byakuya Togami** , Ultimate Scion, heir to the indomitable Togami Empire… It’s as if you expect your blood to change types at will, it just doesn’t work! If you want my worthless, frank opinion – you still have your money and glory, it’s just the material side of it has been cut off **temporarily**. Don’t you see the sway you still hold with everyone? Souda-kun toils away for you, as does Hinata, and Mioda and Yukizome-sensei wish you the best. Even Nevermind sees you as an equal, if not a better leader than her. Meanwhile I am a loose cannon that has to be treated like glass; it’s my fault Saionji and Owari are dead, so it’s not like the disdain and loathing is undeserved. We are **not** the same, Togami-kun. Not even close.”

Byakuya pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. Why did Komaeda have to be so difficult? This wasn’t an inquisition!

“Komaeda, I…” The heir took a deep, calming breath to steady himself. He wasn’t going to get caught in the luckster’s pace. “You’re right, time isn’t a two-way street. You do need to take responsibility for your part in Owari’s murder, but you aren’t the only one at fault. If… If I had approached you about my suspicions, rather than try to disarm you, perhaps things would have turned out differently. Perhaps Souda, Nevermind, Tsumiki, and Kuzuryu wouldn’t have felt scared and powerless. Perhaps Owari and Saionji would be alive. Perhaps… you and I would have started off on a better foot.”

Nagito narrowed his eyes at the heir’s own hypocritical self-deprecation. His lips curled in distaste.

“Togami-kun, I can’t accept that. You were a true leader and tried to protect everyone. You and Yukizome-sensei worked together, and you tried to spare everyone the knowledge of what was going on. Do you seriously expect me to believe that you blame yourself more than you blame me? In the end, it all comes back to me, doesn’t it? Saionji overheard me talking to Tsumiki; Souda-kun kept quiet because he wanted me to commit the first murder; Nevermind couldn’t get her people out of her head because I planted that idea in her head; Tsumiki was scared to death of me…” The luckster ruefully shook his head. “Just stop trying to cheer me up, Togami-kun. Do what you came here to do and leave. Trash like me deserves nothing less.”

Byakuya’s frown deepened so much his cheeks hurt. Yet he kept his arms crossed.

“Komaeda, everything you did was because you wanted what was best for everyone. You were misguided in how you wanted to help us, but that doesn’t make you an irredeemable monster! Why is it so unbelievable that I would come here and offer anything except an olive branch?”

Nagito rolled his eyes, crossing his arms as well, and sighed airily.

“So, you overheard me and Hinata… Well, I’m not surprised. It’s not like we were trying to keep it private. I’m sure you were only looking out for your precious **assistant**. It makes sense you’d want to do a follow-up with me, to make sure my head’s on straight. Wouldn’t want me plotting Hinata’s murder behind his back, huh?”

Byakuya took a step back, dumbfounded by the luckster’s petty and thorny. He shook his head slowly.

“Komaeda… You have it all wrong… I didn’t come here because of that meeting between you and Hinata at all. I’m here for you, and only you.”

“But you **do** know about the meeting we had.” Nagito sneered, waving off the heir’s continued anguish. “Whatever, it’s not like I care anyway. You can deny it all you like, Togami-kun, but on some level you’re doing this for Hinata and everybody else. Maybe you convinced yourself this is an altruistic mission for my sake alone, but let’s face it – it’s a payoff if I’m not a threat to anyone. Like I keep telling you, stop trying to spare my feelings. I know your true feelings, perhaps better than you do yourself.”

Byakuya’s shoulders sagged, and he met the luckster’s eyes with such an exhausted gaze. But still, Nagito could tell it wasn’t guilt, resignation, or defeat that wore Togami down… There was something else he was missing here. There had to be.

“Komaeda…” Byakuya mumbled, before he crossed his arms again. “I am being honest when I say no one else inspired me to come here – not Hinata, not Sensei, not anybody. They are the furthest from my mind. I didn’t come here to lecture, psychoanalyze, or abuse you. I am here… because you are my classmate, and I wish to be your friend. That’s all I want.”

Nagito arched an eyebrow in disbelief.

“Truly, that’s **all** you want? You must be desperate for someone new to entertain you, if you’re stooping to my level. I’m sure Hinata, Mioda, or anyone else would be much more amusing…”

Byakuya looked off to the side, a faraway look in his eyes.

“… It is terrible, being alone. Especially if you impose it on yourself. Regardless of the reason, you shouldn’t isolate yourself – there are people that genuinely want to be your friend. You can’t close every door out of spite.”

Nagito rolled his eyes and sneered in disgust.

“The Ultimate Scion wants to claim he knows what it’s like being **alone**? I wonder, is it your talent that makes you try to **understand** the worthless commoners, to know what it’s like being in our shoes? Or are you really so full of yourself that you’ve fooled yourself into thinking you spent even five minutes without a servant or peasant nearby to lick your feet? I’m **really** curious to hear your thoughts, now. Go on.”

Byakuya opened and closed his mouth in an attempt to try and explain. To clear up the misunderstanding… To have full transparency between them.

… But he couldn’t do it. In the end, Byakuya stiffly walked away on shaky legs, gnawing at his fingernails. Nagito petulantly called after him, waving lazily as he did.

“Oh, are we done so soon? I’m sorry for eating up so much of your time! Let’s try to do this again sometime, hmm?”

For as mocking and rude as Nagito was being in that moment, Byakuya terribly wished he could just come out and explain to the luckster just why he could relate to him. He didn’t fault the luckster’s skepticism, or the way he jeered in ‘victory’. Nagito was right to… hate him.

If he couldn’t open to Hinata about his past, there was no way he was going to be able to do that with Nagito. Not yet.

He cursed himself for being such a gutless coward… Nagito deserved a better friend than him. They… they all did. A friend, a leader…

Being deposed as the Class Rep… he deserved every second of it. After all, wasn’t he just using someone else’s face and influence to exist? He knew he’d been pushing it…

But he really did care for them. This class that he barely knew. He… couldn’t help caring. Was it so wrong to wish that he had the power to make a difference and watch over them, as the real Togami would have?

… Maybe it was. Perhaps Komaeda had a point… he truly was arrogant.

~*~

Chiaki tilted her head curiously; her player, Kirby, was largely untouched by the carnage unfolding in the arena in the sky. It was interesting finding out which of her classmates were the most competitive in gaming… Ikusaba and Pekoyama had been surprisingly intense, and Chiaki definitely felt she’d have to watch Ikusaba in the future. But it seemed like the boys had their equivalents to Ikusaba and Pekoyama… in this case, Nidai and Tanaka.

The aura radiating from those two was awe-inspiring. Chiaki had to give them credit; she usually saw spirit like that only from official gaming tournaments… Mioda was pretty fun as their fourth player, but Nidai and Tanaka were going at it like Blue and Red from the Pokemon games… even though they had only known each other for a few days.

“GAHAHA! I like that! You got moxie!” Nekomaru roared with laughter as Tanaka’s avatar, a scarfed hamster, landed a good hit on his avatar, which was a robot-type of character.

Ibuki’s character, Sonic, just kept trying to jump into the mix and make it a random three-way. But in spite of her constant interference, the two boys seemed to only see the other as the main obstacle to their way to victory.

“No… Don’t you dare kick me… like hell you do…!” The breeder muttered unintelligibly as Sonic kicked his hamster avatar into the air, which was avenged in the next moment by Nidai’s avatar smacking Sonic from behind, but it was nowhere near knocking the blue hedgehog from off the ledge, and off Ibuki ran to brew more chaos.

“BRING IT…!!!” Nekomaru roared.

“IBUKI WILL BRING!!!” The musician eccentrically screamed back.

“YEAH! SHOW ME WHAT YA GOT!!!” The coach bellowed. “SHIT! BRING ITTTTTT!!!”

“THIS WILL NOT GO UNPUNISHED!” Gundham bellowed back, making Ibuki laugh harder.

Chiaki just smiled as her three boisterous classmates got along in their own way. Oh… it seemed Sonic had turned his attention on Kirby, and they’d be dueling above Nidai and Tanaka’s avatars… Then again, the way Sonic leapt away from Nidai’s reckless charge as he plowed into Gundham’s hamster avatar, it wasn’t all that surprising…

Oh. Nekomaru seemed more reckless than Chiaki initially thought… That was pretty close to the edge of the arena…

“Y-You fool…! If you insist on pressing this attack, we shall **both** fall to our doom!!!” Gundham shivered nervously as he and the team manager leaned into the screen anxiously and with determination as Nekomaru just kept charging despite Gundham’s attempted counterattacks…

“You’re not the boss of me, scumbaaaaaaag…!”

… The two avatars fell off and died in an explosive blaze of glory. Nekomaru and Gundham deadpanned at the screen, the breeder limply dropping his controller into his lap. Sonic and Kirby just kept going at it until Kirby eventually won…

And then the match was on again. Because now it was personal, and neither Nekomaru nor Gundham would back down. However, soon after the match had begun, Ibuki unplugged her controller and rubbed the back of her neck, chuckling nervously.

Chiaki briefly turned her head and cocked it curiously at the musician.

“Done already?”

Ibuki nodded sadly.

“Sorry, Nanami-chan, Ibuki’s got Byakuya-chan and Hajimeme to see… But give ‘em Hell for Ibuki, alright?! Ibuki will definitely be back on another date~!”

Chiaki nodded slowly, smiling kindly.

“Okay. We’re still on for the beach party this afternoon, right?”

Ibuki flashed her a double thumb’s-up.

“You betcha! Tsumiki-chan, Nevermind-chan, Ikusaba-chan, and Pekoyama-chan are all supposed to be there! Sensei said she was gonna stop by, too! Don’t be laaate~!”

Chiaki frowned thoughtfully as she easily spotted one name missing from that list.

“Koizumi-chan isn’t coming? I thought she’d be planning this with you…”

Ibuki deflated a little and grinned nervously, rubbing the back of her head.

“Koizumi-chan… has some important stuff to sort out…She wanted to talk to Ibuki and Tsumiki-chan, but we have the beach party, and Koizumi-chan didn’t want us to cancel our fun for it… It sounds really complicated, but Koizumi-chan says we can talk about it tomorrow.”

Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully. The boys were so engrossed in their competition that they weren’t hearing a word of what the girls were mumbling about.

“If she wanted to talk, why not do it at the party? I’m sure Sensei would like to help, too…”

Ibuki rubbed her arm, appearing insecure as her eyes darted to the side.

“Yeah… Ibuki asked that, too… But Koizumi-chan didn’t wanna stress the others out about it. It’s between us and someone else, but Ibuki promised not to tell.”

Chiaki nodded sadly in understanding.

“I get it… Well, if it becomes too much for you guys, don’t be afraid to tell Yukizome-sensei about it. She wants to help!”

Ibuki nodded vigorously.

“Ibuki knows~! It’s all up to Koizumi-chan, really. Ibuki’s just doing what she wants. See ya, Nanami-chan!” With a friendly wave, the musician bolted out of the hotel lobby.

Chiaki hummed in concern before resuming the game with Gundham and Nekomaru. Mahiru was one of the more responsible ones of the group, so she probably didn’t need to stress over it… But she did worry, all the same. This was about missing memories regarding loved ones, after all. And if that were the case…

Chiaki’s frown deepened. She’d definitely check in on Mahiru later.

~*~

Nagito sighed raggedly as he stepped out of the library soon after Togami had run away. After that exchange, he wasn’t in the mood for trying to translate the articles that Sonia had been gushing about in regards to Sparkling Justice. Sonia had been telling the entire class about the Spanish serial killer, going on and on about what a great hero of justice she was…

Not that the stories had particularly piqued Nagito’s interest. They seemed like your typical gossip fare. But even so, how else was he going to waste the days away? It’s not as if he had any friends, Monokuma’s motive had confirmed as much.

_‘This message is for Nagito Komaeda… Unfortunately, there is no one in the world who cares about you enough to call you a friend! No family left, either… I’m so sorry. Really, I am. You have my deepest sympathies. Sorry, sorry, sorry!’_

… Even now, just thinking about that succinct, cruel truth had the white-haired boy clenching his jaw and grinding his teeth. All that time in Hope’s Peak Academy… and he hadn’t even managed **one** friend? He knew he’d be an outsider, someone that didn’t belong, not even among his own class, but the bear hadn’t even given him false hope with a note from one of his classmates, here. Nothing from their school days to indicate Komaeda had accomplished even **one** acquaintance that took a leap of faith with getting to know him…

Not even Hinata, or Ikusaba. It made his stomach lurch and the back of his mouth go sour at the mere acknowledgement that… that he was truly worthless and unwanted. He’d been calling himself such derogatory names for years, all for the sake of numbing the pain and preparing himself for the inevitability that he was right…

Yet even so, some part of himself must have yearned to be proven wrong. Monokuma’s latest motive was supposed to be his ironic salvation… but of course, the bear had no hope to offer. That’s not what he was here for. But wasn’t this despair just… too much? It disgusted him that he’d been delusional for all these years, waiting for something that was never coming. He was outraged – with both his supposed ‘classmates’ and… himself…

It wasn’t fair to take his frustrations out on them. Even if he still highly doubted Togami’s intentions were pure and for his sake alone, the heir didn’t deserve to be snubbed like that. After all, it wasn’t his fault that Nagito was such a wretched, depraved creature. The heir was proceeding toward the hope that the heir believed in, and Nagito had mocked him for it. It was petty and unfair of him to belittle such endeavors.

And Hinata… Well. Nagito seriously doubted the mysterious boy’s curiosity would linger. Goodwill was only available when the other person had something useful to offer, right? Nagito didn’t have anything that could sustain Hinata’s interest perpetually. It was stupid to pretend that he did. He’d burned through Ikusaba’s goodwill, and Ikusaba was a saint, compared to most people he’d met. She cared so much for him… would gladly lay down her life. And he’d used her, not even showing an ounce of remorse for going against her feelings regarding his wellbeing…

Because in the grand scheme, what did he matter? He was a dead man walking, his hopes and dreams amounting to a few specs of sand on a beach filled with so many other **important** people. Indeed… he really was so worthless Now that he’d sat on it… Monokuma’s motive was entirely deserved. He was so tired of lying to himself…

“Komaeda-kun?”

Nagito stiffened at the voice that came from a small distance behind him. He slowly turned around and squinted at the orange-haired woman, who was emerging from the pharmacy, which he’d passed by in his aimless wandering.

“Sensei…” The luckster muttered hollowly, both sapped of energy from his self-loathing, as well as his feelings towards this woman. If Monokuma’s note was to be believed, not even she had cared about him, during their school days. Not enough to see him as a **friend** …

Just another student in her eyes, he was sure. A random face in the crowd. Doomed to fade in the background as her attention focused on those that **mattered**.

Perhaps a woman with such an enormous heart could be cursed, after all. She couldn’t afford favoritism. She couldn’t give him what he wanted… she **shouldn’t**. It would be a stain on her unblemished record, and as an educator at the most powerful learning institution in the world… unblemished records were absolutely vital. He wouldn’t be selfish and impose.

The orange-haired woman pocketed the notepad she’d been holding, and then took a few tentative steps toward the luckster who stood there rigidly.

“I was going to check on you later, but I suppose now’s a good time as any. How’re you holding up? Be honest with me.”

Nagito averted his gaze and half-turned away from her.

“I’m… fine.” He lied. Well… half-lied. Because he had accepted his fate, hadn’t he? Best to stop wasting everyone’s time, especially Sensei’s. Best for her to just move onto the next one…

He stiffened as the housekeeper placed a hand on his shoulder consolingly.

“Komaeda… Nidai-kun told me you’ve been on edge all morning. What’s the matter? Is it the motive Monokuma gave us?” She asked, genuine concern reflecting in her eyes.

Nagito gnashed his teeth, and clenched his fists at his sides so hard that they hurt.

“I said I’m fine! Go bug Togami-kun, I’m pretty sure I gave him a good tongue-lashing that he didn’t deserve, so he’ll need someone like you to lick his wounds. Just… leave this nobody to rot.”

“Komaeda-kun… I really do care about you…!” Chisa muttered, her eyes softening. Nagito hissed and swiped her hand off his shoulder in aggravation.

“Why? It’s my fault two of your students are **dead**. It’s probably also my fault that everyone’s walking on eggshells around each other with the latest motive. **I am nothing**! A worthless parasite feeding off your goodwill and compassion! I’ve been a no one since the day I was born, while you’ve been one of the brightest beacons of Hope since the day **you** were born!”

Nagito’s head went to the side slightly as he felt a searing pain on his left cheek. He felt too empty to give Sensei the pleasure of seeing wide, shocked eyes, so he maintained a passive, emotionless gaze even if his teeth were still grinding together furiously.

“You’re not a no one…” Chisa denied his rant, making the luckster quiver in a silent rage. “You’re my student, and I **will** get you out of here… That’s a promise I intend to keep!”

Nagito sneered distastefully, having heard the words so many times before, but now with the motive, it was so clear to him now…

“Your **student** , yes…I suppose I am. If that’s how you justify having a troublesome individual for an acquaintance, I won’t judge. We all have to head toward the hope that we each believe in… So I won’t stop you.” He raised a hand close to his face and sighed miserably. “I wanted to see Hopes clash to see which was the superior one… I thought it’d be a **privilege** to start such an exciting contest, but clearly I was **wrong** about what it’d be like… Nobody appreciates the situation we find ourselves in! The opportunity we have! You’re all so hung up on the negative aspects you can’t see the blinding Hope that’s going to come from this.”

Chisa shook her head fiercely, frowning at the luckster in disapproval.

“Komaeda-kun, hope isn’t supposed to be a battlefield! Hope is about the memories we make… the bonds we share! It’s not about overcoming trials or hardships! Sometimes, you have to be strong in a terrible situation, and that is hope… But it’s not about beating someone else or proving your hope is superior! You should be working together with everyone, not against them! Why would you ever think it’s anything like a battle royale?”

Nagito shrugged nonchalantly, averting his gaze to the ground.

“You can’t make a worthy Hope through elbow grease, Sensei… I **am** a no one. I can’t be anything else, it’s like trying to go to space with a bottle rocket. You guys should move to the Hope you all believe in… Worrying about me is pointless; I’ll only drag you down.”

Chisa grabbed the boy by the shoulders, turning him to face her before shaking him emotionally.

Why? Why did Komaeda have no faith in himself? Why did he push them away?

Why…?

~*~

“Byakuya-chaaan~!”

The heir, sitting on his bed hunched over, stared dully at the door to his cottage, hearing and see it pounding. He should muster up the energy to greet the musician and see what she wanted… He should be doing a lot of things.

But he just couldn’t. He felt so dead and useless inside… Mustering up any kind of energy, let alone a whole character like Byakuya Togami was just… He wasn’t in the right frame of mind. He’d kept the lights off in his cottage since it was late morning/early afternoon, so perhaps Mioda would think he was out.

He sincerely hoped she would buy that… He didn’t need to explain to Sensei why he needed a new door for his cottage, after all. Mioda was surprisingly persistent, today. She’d kept up that pounding for five… ten… fifteen minutes now.

At last, the pounding and yelling ceased. The heir blinked slowly as he looked at the door, and could even faintly hear the sound of footsteps fading away, outside. Did… did she give up? While most of him felt palpable relief, a small part of him did feel disappointed that it took 15 minutes for Ibuki to lose interest in him… or, well, looking for him in his cottage.

Byakuya sighed wearily and massaged his temple. Perhaps he should just get a nap in. Maybe that would improve his mood.

He froze when he could hear the sound of something sliding up quickly. Looking around worriedly, he didn’t see the source of the noise… until he looked to the window that overlooked the Hotel Mirai’s main building. Then he blinked owlishly as he saw the thing wide open… He about had a heart attack when in the next moment a spinning giant ball that looked more like a blur flew through the opening, and landed feet first on the table by the window. The ball unfolded, and Ibuki stood up to her full height, appearing very disoriented when she did. She knocked over the flower vase, the books on the table, and tablecloth before collapsing to the floor woozily.

Despite the home invasion, and the mild mess she’d made, Byakuya called out to her, appearing to be debating with himself to check on her.

“Are… are you alright?” While he didn’t physically approach her, he did manage to get that out.

Ibuki’s eyes, formerly spinning from dizziness, blinked slowly before she sprung to her feet in a hurry, arms flailing wildly.

“Byakuya-chan wasn’t answering Ibuki’s calls! So Ibuki had to do an Emergency House Call!” The musician poked her fingers together bashfully, grinning nervously. “Ibuki thought it might be easier to squeeze in through cannonball, but Ibuki underestimated Ibuki’s own speed… But Ibuki’s fiiine~!”

Byakuya blinked slowly at the excited reply.

“… You do not understand what a house call is. This is closer to breaking-and-entering…” The heir sighed before ruefully shaking his head. “Well, you’re here. You can sit where you like, I suppose… Although, I’m curious… What were you planning to do if I wasn’t home?”

Ibuki’s grin became decidedly more proud as she placed her hands on her hips.

“Wait for you to get home! … Probably…” She chuckled nervously as Byakuya **stared** at her. “… Okay, maybe not wait. Ibuki can only count Ibuki’s toes so many times before Ibuki goes cross-eyed… But! But, but! Ibuki didn’t have to worry about that stuff ‘cause Ibuki could hear Byakuya-chan’s breathing~!”

The heir paled and stared at her in shock.

“Th-Through the door…?”

Ibuki nodded sagely, crossing her arms smugly.

“From the crosswalk over by Hajimeme’s place~!”

Byakuya kept staring, both impressed and horrified. Ibuki’s hearing was Ultimate level, he knew that… But if she could hear his breathing when she wasn’t right up next to his door, that was just terrifying.

“Wh… Why are you here, Mioda…?” The heir eventually asked, faintly. He didn’t want to linger much more on this topic… He might go mad, if he did.

“Ibuki!” The musician flailed her arms dramatically. “Byakuya-chan’s supposed to call Ibuki by first-name basis! We’re already to second bassssssse~!”

“… Ibuki.” Byakuya decided to humor the girl, feeling like she was probably just overexcited like she was. “Why are you here?”

Ibuki pouted at the repeated question.

“Did Byakuya-chan forget his pinky promise?! Byakuya-chan was gonna watch Hajime-chan and Ibuki become rockets with our music~! Ibuki wanted three-way, but Byakuya-chan and Hajime-chan said no!”

Despite his current mood, Byakuya felt his face heating up, and he coughed awkwardly into his fist and averted his gaze.

“That’s because that’s a more loaded question than you know, a-and… and anyway, music is your and Hinata’s ‘thing’. I wouldn’t want to steal that from you two.” He crossed his arms and tried to suppress the heat in his face.

… Why did Ibuki have to be so hyper all the time? She could ask the most embarrassing questions and not know the situation she creates by just asking them…

“Aww.” Ibuki’s pout became more pronounced as she lightly smacked her head a bit. “Byakuya-chan’s worried about too many things! Music’s meant to be shared by eeeveryone~! Ibuki knows Byakuya-chan would be great at bass, or maybe even the tuba! Or maybe Byakuya-chan would like to become our DJ?”

Byakuya blinked slowly at the many different directions she was going. He could see why Hajime struggled to keep up.

“Does the music studio even have a tuba?” His morbid curiosity begged him to inquire. It had a flamethrower-guitar, so he wouldn’t be surprised by anything at this point.

Ibuki dragged her foot along the ground and looked down like a puppy caught peeing on the carpet.

“… Nah, Ibuki didn’t care much for the tuba, anyway… Byakuya-chan can just do bass, or keyboard, or DJ~!” The way her eyes lit up, the heir could tell she was hoping he’d warm up to the last option.

He coughed awkwardly.

“Well… I may have played the piano… a few times in the past…” The heir reluctantly revealed. Ibuki perked up at the idea, despite it not being her favorite one.

“Then Byakuya-chan can be our keyboard player~! Accompaniment’s not as fun as lead guitar, but Byakuya-chan will be the best accompanist ever! Ibuki knooows~!”

Byakuya coughed awkwardly again, still not meeting her eyes.

“I… haven’t played in years. M… Maybe some other time, Ibuki. Another day. Right now, I just need… time to myself.” He blinked owlishly when the musician plopped on the bed next to him, staring up at the ceiling with a distant gaze.

“Ibuki knows all about those days… That’s why Byakuya-chan should get out there and **do** stuff~! Otherwise Byakuya-chan might end up going out that door and winding up on a fishing boat that takes you to another country…. Anything could happen~!”

Byakuya eyed the upbeat musician curiously; most would write off her ramblings as nonsense… But he grasped at the essence of what she was trying to tell him. He averted his gaze to the floor and frowned.

“I just have a lot on my mind, Ibuki… Sometimes, I just… I need a day to collect myself and regain my bearings.” He muttered softly.

He jumped when Ibuki clapped his shoulder multiple times to some kind of rhythm that he couldn’t keep up with.

“Life’s too short to stay hooked on sad things, Byakuya-chan~! If you focus on the fun stuff instead, it’ll take your mind off the sad~!”

Byakuya returned his gaze to the upbeat girl, uncertain.

“I’m… not sure I’m worthy of the ‘fun stuff’, Ibuki… Not today. I just… I failed a friend. And it would be like spitting in their face, if I enjoyed time with you all.” And that was the truth. Komaeda had accused him of such, hadn’t he?

Yet Ibuki waved him off.

“If you fail the first time, try, try again~! You can’t stay mopey all day, that’ll just carry over to other days! Byakuya-chan needs to get his fun on so Byakuya-chan can make it up to his friend later~! C’mooon, Byakuya-chan!” The impulsive girl tugged on his arm, and the heir stared at her with a newfound fascination.

Ibuki… could be surprisingly perceptive and wise. They didn’t give her nearly enough credit. Slowly, Byakuya reluctantly accepted the musician’s extended hand, and he allowed her to yank him to his feet.

… He would do better by Komaeda. He’d do better by them all.

Even if… he wasn’t ready yet to tell them about his real identity…

~*~

Later that afternoon, Gundham was belatedly wondering how he got dragged into this… this… **outing of debauchery**. He had been pleased that Souda had been willing to resume their master-disciple bond… and they’d been discussing about possible dark rituals they could engage in for the rest of the day…

And then **he** appeared. Whispering such adulterous things into Souda’s ears, things that made both of them blush madly upon hearing them… And right when he’d moved to veto this sinful outing, Souda had blurted out that the Dark Queen would definitely be here. And that had piqued Gundham’s curiosity…

Ah. That’s how. He had given his disciple too much power.

And now he was stuck in this hell of… of… Why had the sirens decided to remove their clothes to reveal what lay underneath?! This was just too much!

Gundham tugged at his scarf and buried the lower half of his face in it as he steamed. He glowered at Kazuichi and Teruteru.

“Disciple… why have the sirens shed their garments to reveal the sin underneath…?” He asked archly, trying not to stare too much at Mikan and her… **swimsuit** … It was much too snug around her… posterior… Well, he supposed her top wasn’t much better…

Ibuki, thankfully, was much more modest, not nearly as enticing. He could stare at the perky musician without feeling like he was in an oven.

“Huh. Guess they came wearing their swimsuits underneath.” Kazuichi mused, scratching at his scalp as if he was speaking of something so casual… “Well, that’s what I did, too!”

“As did I!” Teruteru bounced on his heels excitedly, his nose bleeding a little.

“…” Gundham **stared** at the devil that had roped them into this debauchery. If it didn’t result in death for himself, he’d slay the midget where he stood…!

“Oh yeah… You don’t have your swimsuit yet, do ya?” Kazuichi handed the breeder a camouflaged… speedo.

Gundham stared at the garment in the mechanic’s hands like it was an abomination from a deeper level of Hell than he’d journeyed to.

Mikan clutched her chest and squeezed her eyes shut anxiously.

“U-Um… It may be rude of me to say this, but… Th-That… looks a little too daring!” The nurse wailed.

Ibuki tilted her head in amazement.

“What if something falls out? If this is airing live, you’re totally gonna get censored by the network!”

Kazuichi gave a thumb’s-up.

“Don’t worry! Even at its worst, it won’t turn into a live action drama!”

Gundham deadpanned at the mechanic, crossing his arms.

“That’s **not** the problem…”

Kazuichi shook a fist in outrage.

“What is it, then?! Are you telling me you don’t wanna match with me?!”

Gundham recoiled at the mechanic’s confession.

“M… Matching?! Then I **definitely** don’t want to wear it, you fool…!”

“It’s for **Sonia-san**! C’mooon!” The pink-haired teen grumbled.

“Ughhh… I believe fighting is bad… so let’s stop…” Mikan tried to defuse the argument.

“Things are heating up something fierce.” Ibuki peered at them curiously. “When’s everyone gonna come? I hope they come soon!”

The musician was a little disappointed that it was just Hanamura, Souda, and Tanaka who wanted to crash their girls’ only beach party… Byakuya-chan and Hajime-chan both declined to join, feeling all embarrassed about it~…

… Although seeing Hajime-chan aimlessly wander toward Chandler Beach in that moment, outside the diner’s window, perhaps she’d get to surprise him with Ibuki’s awesome swimsuit after all~! Ibuki was totally excited.

“Hey… when’d you get here?!” Kazuichi drew everyone’s attention as he called out to Chiaki, who was just entering the diner in a bikini, just like Mikan.

… And just like before, Gundham felt he was in an oven, the more he stared at that milky skin… and those… those curves…

He had sloughed off his jacket by this point, wiping at his brow while unable to look any of the **females** in the eye…

“My, my, how disappointing. I thought if I came early, I’d be the first one to arrive.” Chiaki pouted.

“Whoaaa!” Ibuki gushed. “Nanami-chan! You came only wearing your swimsuit?!”

“I didn’t want to carry it with me.” Chiaki answered. “If I did, it’d be a serious burden.”

Kazuichi tilted his head again.

“But… even though you didn’t wanna carry anything, it looks like you’re carrying something.” The mechanic pointed out curiously.

Chiaki nodded faintly.

“Instead of bringing lunch for everyone… I brought ice cream.”

Mikan tittered nervously, poking her fingers together.

“Um… It’s not like I’m going to turn it down, but… Ice cream is completely different from lunch. I don’t think it can be used as a substitute…”

Chiaki hummed thoughtfully.

“Also… I was thinking of stuff we could all do at the beach together… so I brought a board game, too!”

“Hmm… Should we play it even though we came all this way to go to the beach? … Nah!” The musician vetoed the gamer’s idea.

Chiaki moaned a little.

“I see, that’s disappointing...”

“Um, how should I say this…” Kazuichi sounded a little too excited as Chiaki came into the diner more properly, and he got a better look at her. “Is this what ‘gap moe’ is supposed to be?! For someone normally so quiet to wear such a daring, it makes you a little excited… right, Tanaka?”

Gundham steamed in embarrassment underneath his scarf.

“I… I… I don’t… know…” He mumbled awkwardly.

Kazuichi lazily slung his arms behind his head and grinned.

“Seriously, man… I never expected Nanami to have such huge jugs…”

“… Jugs?” Chiaki asked curiously.

Kazuichi pointed toward the breeder in embarrassment.

“I-I didn’t say that just now! It was Tanaka! He’s a pervert, you know!”

Gundham whirled on the mechanic murderously.

“You have gone too far…!”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head shamefully and hung his head.

“… Okay, okay, so Tanaka actually only has eyes for Sonia-san… B-But… I still didn’t say that… Ehehe…” The mechanic chuckled nervously.

Chiaki hummed thoughtfully.

“The size is a little small… but this is the only swimsuit that fit me…” The gamer revealed. “I don’t look good in it?”

Gundham paled, afraid of insulting the kind gamer.

“H-Huh? N-No, no… D-Don’t be fooled, I-I believe you have some… n-nice jugs… too…” His body overheated at saying such lecherous niceties.

He would definitely have to meditate later, and think about what he has done.

“Then I’m glad… I guess.” Chiaki smiled. Gundham averted his gaze bashfully.

Ibuki cheered.

“Mwahahaha~! Wearing a bikini is suuure daring~! And you get bonus points for wearing a white one! My heart’s not just thumping, it’s thumping all sporadically, ‘badump, thump! Thump, badump~!’”

“Hope it’s not a heart attack~…” Teruteru purred.

“Sorry to keep you guys waiting!” All eyes turned to the next speaker… who was accompanied by someone else. Chisa beamed at them all. “Sorry, this one was playing hard to get!”

The orange-haired woman nudged Ikusaba, who glanced down at the floor shyly.

“I don’t see why my presence is necessary…” The dark-haired girl mumbled. She had been tailing Hinata-kun, when the teacher had pounced her and dragged her off to change.

Why did she have to get in a swimsuit again? Didn’t they do this on the first day on Jabberwock?

Compared to the girls in bikinis, Chisa and Mukuro were in much more modest suits… But that didn’t mean the modesty fully disguised the ‘goods’ they had – Mukuro had some nice legs, and she was still rather fit, if not a bit on the smaller side in the chest… Then you had Sensei, and, well…

Kazuichi and Teruteru couldn’t help squealing in delight, while Gundham could comically feel his spirit leaving his body at gazing at an older and… more endowed woman such as Yukizome-sensei… Indeed, this had to be **true** Hell…! It was so hot in here…!

The mechanic flashed the breeder a thumb’s-up again.

“Hey, hey, Tanaka~! Aren’t ya glad to have a teacher chaperone? And Ikusaba~… Man, we got so many cute girls! Cuuute~!”

… Gundham was a little too busy trying to not pass onto the next realm, so he was unable to answer his troublesome friend.

“And this body, too… man…” Ibuki whistled. “Young ladies sure are well-endowed nowadays… Is that a challenge against all women in the world?! Fine! Ibuki accepts that challenge with the power of technology! Time to pump these puppies full of silicon~!”

Chisa sweatdropped and tried calming the hyper musician down.

“N-Now, now, Mioda… That’s not appropriate talk for a nice, relaxing day at the beach…” Despite the event supposed to be a girls’ only outing, she didn’t lecture the boys for being present…

Although she did beam twitchily at Teruteru… just a little bit.

Mukuro just stared off into the distance, wondering what Hinata was up to. Kazuichi slung his arms behind his head again and grinned.

“Anyway, it looks like everyone is almost here… and we’re not anywhere near 4pm, yet…”

“Ah, I am terribly sorry for the delay…” Sonia’s voice drifted into everyone’s ears as she entered the diner. Kazuichi whirled on her excitedly, and elbowed Gundham back into the world of the living. Gundham snapped to attention and had more of a silent and reserved intensity than the mechanic… But no one could deny he appeared ready for this… heavenly sight. Whatever it might end up being. It would most certainly make this whole excursion worth it!

Oh. She wasn’t wearing a swimsuit.

“GYAAAH! It’s a wetsuit!” Kazuichi moaned.

Sonia waved at them all casually, the wetsuit still managing to hug at the curves of her body nicely.

“It is to prevent sunburn. I do not want my skin to be sun damaged. However, as I have never worn a wetsuit before, I had a hard time putting it on. Which resulted in my delay… Really, it is my bad.” The Princess explained her choice in suit with a beaming smile that never left her face.

“I see… a wetsuit…” Teruteru purred. He nudged Kazuichi playfully. “Well, Sonia-san **does** have beautiful, white skin…”

Kazuichi nodded eagerly in excitement.

“That tight outfit of hers is amaaazing~! Just what I’d expect from a 100% purebred Princess~!”

Gundham just **stared** at the Princess, utterly entranced. Sonia laughed softly and blushed at the quiet, intense gaze of the breeder.

“Anyway, what are you three doing here?”

Kazuichi waved his arm excitedly.

“Sonia-san, with respect… With you all headed out for a beach party, please let us join you! It’d be our honor if you accept!”

Sonia hummed thoughtfully.

“Well, I do not mind Gundham and Souda-kun…” Her eyes lingered on the third boy, who just stared at her lustfully.

Chisa sighed lightly and ran a hand through her hair calmly.

“Well… I guess I’d prefer him being out in the open, where we can see him… He’s going to come, whether we give approval or not. Ikusaba-chan, do you mind helping me keep an eye on him?”

Mukuro blinked slowly before turning her gaze to the drooling Teruteru, who looked happy as a clam to be amongst so many beauties.

“… Okay.” Mukuro mumbled. She could do that, she supposed.

Ibuki tilted her head.

“Hang on… Where’s Pekoyama-chan? Wasn’t she gonna come, too?”

Chisa frowned as that was brought up.

“Ah, I saw her a little bit ago… She said she’d be late, so we should start without her – that’s what she said, anyway.”

… Well, there was certainly no objections, if the way Kazuichi bolted out the door ahead of the pack was any indication.

~*~

Hajime wasn’t entirely sure what brought him to Chandler Beach, that afternoon. He didn’t have any serious reasoning behind it. He was just out for a walk, and he supposed he had wanted to admire the view at the private beach for a little bit. A harmless walk on the beach, that was all he wanted. Maybe brainstorm a bit on how to approach Tsumiki and help her with her problems… That was the one thing on his mind.

He never intended to overhear raised voices from the beach house. Perhaps if he’d minded his own business, he wouldn’t be in this mess. Yet when he had seen who was in the beach house… and what was about to happen… He couldn’t stop his own body’s momentum.

Fuyuhiko and Mahiru in each other’s faces wasn’t the problem, even if they did look quite cross with one another. It was… the silent swordswoman, moving at a hurried pace, armed with a baseball bat…

Gunning straight for Mahiru.

Hajime’s body moved on its own.

“P… **Pekoyama**! Stop!”

… He’d gotten too close. He didn’t know what he was thinking. All he knew, if Peko swung that bat down on Mahiru’s skull, there’d **definitely** be a Class Trial soon after… so he’d desperately charged to try and stop the swordswoman. He didn’t expect the silver-haired girl to react on instinct, and club **him** over the head instead as she whirled around…

The side of his head felt wet, there was a pounding sensation that overwhelmed him, and his vision went dark soon after he collapsed to the floor unceremoniously. The last thing he heard was Mahiru wail his name.

“ **Hinata** …!”

Soon after the brunet checked out, Fuyuhiko had gone ghastly pale as he turned toward Peko with wide, petrified eyes.

“Wh… What did you do? **What the hell did you do**?! Peko…!” His hands twitched over his chest emotionally.

Peko narrowed her eyes as her gaze swept from the downed brunet with a big, bloody wound on his head, to the petrified redheaded girl that was edging away from her and the Young Master.

“Doing what needs to be done…” The silver-haired girl intoned monotonously, and moved to strike the photographer down next… But the Young Master caught her wrist, this time.

“ **I told you let me handle this shit**!” The blond bellowed. With the swordswoman successfully halted, gazing at him in shock and disbelief, he looked down at Hajime with nothing but panic. “Sh… Shit… M-Maybe Tsumiki can help… Maybe it’s not too late…!”

In the next moment, those thoughts were dashed by the arrival of the previously gung-ho mechanic. He stared at Hajime, the bloody bat in Peko’s hand, Fuyuhiko, and the frightened and panicked Mahiru.

Could anyone blame him for what happened next.

“S-S-SOMEBODY COME HEEERE…! HEEELP!!!”

Peko dropped the bat at this point, acknowledging a battle that was lost. Fuyuhiko gritted his teeth and bowed his head in shame. Mahiru hyperventilated as her eyes went back to the downed brunet… and she screamed a desperate wail.

Oh, she **screamed**.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We-he-he-he-elllll~ Peko-chan's sure in the festive spirit, isn't she? "Deck the Halls", was it? Don we now our bloody Hajime's? :3 We are soooooo close to Deadly Life~ I can almost taste it.... :3 :3 :3
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> Y'know guys, last chap was so engaging in the comments section.... I had a realllll hard time picking one out~ Then I found this gem.
> 
> "bruh
> 
> what is this thread" - Anonymous
> 
> Yes, indeedy.... What WAS that thread? Like something out of Rule 34.... Though, I wouldn't know what that is. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Aw, well. You guys can get excited for your ships, just keep in mind that others will see. Anonymous, thanks for your hilariously accurate comment~ That made my day. :3 
> 
> I am enjoying the comments, though, guys. As long as you have fun, and it doesn't get petty, heated, and unrelated, I won't step in. Keep things civil, if you can.


	17. Chapter 2, Part 5: The Writing's on the Wall

Mukuro’s brow furrowed, and her gaze fell to her knees as her hands clenched at her skirt.

“I… I don’t understand.” She mumbled. And she meant it.

The boy in the hoodie chuckled warmly; the light, pleasant noise had a calming effect on her despite how confused she was.

“Sorry,” The brunet gave a wry smile as he slung his arm on the back of the bench they were sitting on, just behind her stiffening shoulders. “You’re going to need to be a little more specific.”

Mukuro’s hands curled tighter around the fringes of her skirt. Her mouth curled in mild frustration.

“I-I… If I… If I really **did** that to you… to our… friends…” The soldier’s lips wobbled uncertainly, and she squeezed her eyes shut in fear and shame. “Wh-Why aren’t you upset with me? Wh-Why don’t you… hate me…?”

The boy frowned thoughtfully as he tilted his head at her curiously. This went unnoticed, of course. He then turned his gaze up at the sky as the sun was setting, tinting the sky in a beautiful mix of dark blue, purple, pink, orange, yellow, and fluffy white clouds painted in their colors.

“Mm… You did cause a lot of trouble, but… You were only following orders, just like you always do. You didn’t **want** to hurt us, did you?”

Mukuro’s eyes snapped open in bloodshot panic, and she half-turned to him in alarm.

“N… No! I-I would never want to hurt you!” Never Makoto! She scrabbled to awkwardly take his hands in hers and implore him to look into her eyes. He slowly, agonizingly decided to comply, though his eyes didn’t have a trace of misery or sorrow in them; rather, they overflowed with compassion and understanding… like they always did. Mukuro swallowed a lump in her throat and pressed on. “E… Everything… Everything I did, it had to have been for… for Junko. I… I… I destroyed the world… helped our friends kill each other… s-stole your memories… all for… Junko…”

Every concession she made, Mukuro felt her heart shred to pieces, and she miserably squeezed her eyes shut again out of instinct. Why? Why had she been so… boneheaded…? She should have known things had gone too far. Even if you ignored the world, and even their classmates, if it affected Makoto negatively, she should have stopped…

**She should have stopped** …

Tears burst from the soldier’s eyes as she snapped them open again at the sound of cherubic laughter emanating from the luckster in front of her.

“Mukuro… C’mon! You don’t **really** believe that, do you? Think about it, the worst you ever did was swipe our memories, lied to us and worked with Junko, and hurt Sakura… You didn’t do any of that other stuff like ‘ending the world’. It’s not like **you** cocked a gun to Kuwata’s head and made him commit murder!”

Mukuro blinked owlishly.

“B… But… But… I put you in danger. It’s my fault Junko t-tried to… Y-You shouldn’t have been at risk! N-None of you should have…!” The soldier felt somewhat hollow, saying those words. Like she didn’t feel like she fully put stock in them, herself…

Then again, so many of her thoughts were on Makoto and how she could have **lost** him…

“You fell in with a dangerous crowd, that’s for sure…” The kindhearted boy squeezed her hands in reassurance, and… and the tears just kept coming as she could look at nothing but his eyes. “You faltered. You lost your way. But you **came** **back** , didn’t you? It’s thanks to you I’m still alive!”

Mukuro bit down on her lower lip in uncertainty and averted her gaze.

“I-I… I-It was just dumb, blind luck, that was all… Y-You still shouldn’t have been in danger in the first place…”

The cherubic boy’s smile softened even further… if that was possible. Mukuro became entranced by it.

“’Dumb, blind luck’? Who do you think you’re talking to?” The boy giggled at her stunned disbelief. “You’re my hero, Mukuro! You always have been. Don’t you ever sell yourself short!”

Mukuro’s eyes glazed over at such a complimentary title… She couldn’t say that she had ever experienced anything like this. … Or that she disliked it.

“Hero…?” Mukuro echoed numbly, blushing lightly when he cupped her cheek tenderly with one hand.

The cherubic boy beamed brightly, eyes closed contently.

“I think that’s your real Ultimate title, y’know… It’s the most accurate! And it totally removes any tension from what you do! Heroes sometimes need to take drastic steps… I know you’ll always be there and working hard for me. I know that’s not just a gut feeling!”

Mukuro’s heart swelled at the praise, and she felt much lighter than she had in… years. Such elation, relief, and warmth…

Yeah… Yeah! Makoto was totally right! She’d work harder than ever before! She wouldn’t let him down. And if she could help it, he would never stay depressed or hurt for long… She would personally see to his health, both physical and emotional.

… Mukuro still recalled nothing of this dream when her eyes opened the next morning. Even after Hinata got clubbed that afternoon by Pekoyama, and everything that came after it, she didn’t remember…

Yet her instincts continued to guide her.

~*~

Chisa offered a weak smile as her gaze swept the cafeteria. Everyone but Hinata, who was resting in his cabin… Great.

Well. Not great. The fact one of her students could have died, and that fate had narrowly been avoided thanks to the intervention of another – that did not set her heart at ease. She clutched a hand over her heart in sorrow as she looked out at the students.

“Thanks for coming, you guys…” The teacher mumbled quietly, eyes downcast as she took a shaky breath. “We… We need to talk. Even if it’s just for a little bit.”

Kazuichi awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he chuckled nervously.

“Never mind that! Is Hinata gonna make it?”

Mikan trembled a little, but her eyes reflected a rare determination that few of them got to glimpse until now.

“H… Hinata-kun is going to b-be fine… Th-The blow w-was severe, b-but I stemmed the bleeding, a-and the worst is over…” Mikan clasped her hands in front of herself and looked toward Chisa pleadingly. “S-Still…! H-He could relapse, or… or… P-Please let me go check on him…!”

Chisa flashed an apologetic smile, holding up her hands placatingly.

“I promise we won’t be long, Tsumiki-chan! It’s… It’s important that we talk. You said yourself Hinata-kun just needs bedrest now; I have faith in your talent, Tsumiki, so I know Hinata-kun will be alright for just a few minutes.”

Mikan gave a small groan of worry, but otherwise stayed, fidgeting in her seat. Chiaki, sitting next to the nurse, patted her shoulder consolingly.

Nekomaru, who had elected to remain standing, placed his hands on his hips and frowned in concern.

“What happened, anyway? I only heard about the meeting here when you guys announced it over Souda’s island speakers, and that Hinata was roughed up.”

Kazuichi spluttered, arms flailing as he pointed at Pekoyama accusingly.

“Ask her! She’s the one with a bat, going around and cracking people upside the head!”

Sonia poked her index fingers together anxiously and turned to the calm, silent swordswoman, who could feel all eyes on her.

“I-It is true, when some of the other girls and I arrived shortly after Souda-kun started yelling for help, we saw Pekoyama-san with Kuzuryu-kun and Koizumi-san… Hinata-kun was on the floor. P-Pekoyama-san, i-it isn’t true… is it? Surely… it was Kuzuryu-kun who lost his… cool…?”

Peko bowed her head solemnly, closing her eyes, and did not respond. Fuyuhiko’s knuckles turned white from clenching his fists so hard over where he was standing, but he did not snap back a retort like he normally would. Nagito rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“I did find it strange Pekoyama and Kuzuryu seemed familiar with each other… I’d seen them meet up when few others were around. Though, considering their talents, perhaps it’s not so farfetched they’d be acquainted…” He muttered speculatively.

Fuyuhiko growled irritably, keeping his own head bowed.

“Shut the fuck up, you bastard…! You don’t have the right to go digging in others’ shit… Not **you**. Not after you started all this.” He muttered back darkly.

Nagito chuckled sheepishly and held his hands up peacefully. Byakuya crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at the yakuza heir.

“It’s going to get out eventually, Kuzuryu. The history you share with Pekoyama, and even Koizumi. You’d make it easier on yourself if you just told us now.” When the yakuza clamped his mouth shut and kept his eyes closed in refusal, the Togami heir sighed.

Others started to murmur in speculation, doubt, and wariness as they eyed Fuyuhiko and Peko. Mukuro, for her part, was glaring daggers at the swordswoman from where she was standing nearby. Mahiru would have been glaring warily at Fuyuhiko, but she was too drained, her puffy red eyes glancing down at her lap as she fiddled with the hem of her skirt. Chisa cleared her throat, deciding to stop any further probing of the yakuza and swordswoman, for now.

“I’ll be talking with each of you later, Kuzuryu, Pekoyama. For right now, I’ll just say this, everyone: Yes, Hinata-kun was badly hurt. But it doesn’t matter whose fault it is. It doesn’t even matter why they did it… Nothing can justify attempted murder, you guys!” The orange-haired woman placed a hand over her heart passionately, and gazed at her class sorrowfully. “I… I know it’s rough right now. And I’m sorry that I’m going to have to put my foot down here, and get strict… But it’s because I care! I don’t want anyone else hurt, and I want us to come back from this. Because I believe in you guys.”

Teruteru shivered a bit fearfully, casting wary glances at the yakuza and swordswoman.

“Wh-What kind of rules are ya talkin’ about…?” He mumbled, poking his index fingers together nervously. Because it was clear that’s what she was driving at, and they all knew it.

Chisa tried to smile as reassuringly as possible.

“For now, just… We’re going to be keeping an eye on everybody. Souda-kun, could you…?” The orange-haired woman prompted, and Kazuichi blinked before remembering what was requested of him.

“H-Huh…? Oh… yeah…” He mumbled, and then distributed phones and chargers out to all his classmates, and to Yukizome-sensei. He had a spare phone and charger left over, which Mikan accepted to deliver to Hajime, herself.

“Obviously, these won’t be all that we’ll rely on,” Chisa explained as they were distributed. “But Souda-kun did convert the GPS devices into phones, so if you’re ever in need of help, don’t be afraid to use them! We’ll be keeping a vigilant watch on everyone’s locations, and I’d honestly prefer it if you guys traveled in groups of 3 at least… Let me know if you guys go off and do something on your own. No one’s allowed out at nighttime anymore. And… if you see any other secret meetings or talks between people, I want you to call me right away, got it? I’m sorry, but I want to keep you **all** safe, and I’d rather be on the cautious side.”

The cafeteria’s discomfort levels rose considerably. It was reasonable, all of the stuff Sensei was putting into place. But even so, it was hard and bitter to swallow that this was all real. That Pekoyama had tried to kill Koizumi, and had wounded Hinata. That at any moment, any of them could snap and do just what Pekoyama had done…

“What about Pekoyama?” Mukuro hissed lowly, clenching her teeth to rein in her temper. “You’re not just going to let her walk around, are you?”

Despite being commonplace by now, Chisa threw up her hands peacefully.

“I’ll be talking with her and Kuzuryu-kun… They… won’t be allowed to leave their rooms, for a while.”

Fuyuhiko’s shoulders tensed up, and he gritted his teeth, but the yakuza didn’t open his eyes nor did he object.

But Peko did.

“You can’t…!” The swordswoman blurted out, appearing alarmed. Her bamboo sword was confiscated, but that didn’t make the tension in the room dissipate from seeing the silver-haired girl getting worked up.

Chisa took an uneasy breath, and she reluctantly raised her voice.

“Pekoyama, **listen to your teacher**!” The steely tone was enough to make everyone submit, even if the tone and words were directed at the swordswoman. Even Peko yielded, though she did not look pleased. The teacher’s heart broke at seeing Peko’s pale face as she gritted her teeth and bowed her head reluctantly; this wasn’t how she wanted things to go, but given the situation, what were the alternatives. Her eyes softened and she tried to revert back to the kinder, gentler tones, but it was clear there was still no room for arguments here. “Pekoyama… I don’t want things to be this way. But you tried to commit murder, and we can’t just let that go. There are consequences for what you did, and Kuzuryu-kun isn’t blameless, either. Even Koizumi… and anyone else that might have been involved… I’ll need to talk with all of you, to see what this was about. Please. You’re still my student, Pekoyama, you all are. If you won’t do it for me, or Hinata-kun, at least listen so that no one else has to get hurt.”

As Chisa’s gaze swept the room again, the tension still didn’t subside, and the orange-haired woman released another ragged breath. Peko, for her part, was wrestling down her own emotions that threatened to make her revolt. Yukizome-sensei’s word was law… This was the way it had to be. That it **should** be…

And yet… a part of her refused to submit. Fuyuhiko was the absolute authority in her life; this was beaten into her from an early age. She knew… at some point, she might not be able to adhere to Yukizome-sensei’s will; not with the Young Master at stake.

… Fuyuhiko knew this, too, and he grimaced as he spat out his next words.

“Peko. Listen to her. Do everything she says.”

Peko’s eyes snapped open and she whirled on the blond in disbelief.

“Young Master?!”

Fuyuhiko growled impatiently.

“If I say that’s an order, will you fucking listen?” He waved vaguely at the class. “Peko, it’s over. They all know. We’re not getting another chance. Just… do what Sensei says, and stop looking to me. I ain’t tellin’ you to do shit anymore, and I better not hear you causing trouble ‘cause of me. What happens, happens. They won’t hurt me.”

Peko trembled like a leaf. Was… Was it really over? It was a clear dismissal, and yet…

And yet... some part of her couldn’t accept it. She owed her life to the Kuzuryu Clan. Fuyuhiko would definitely be at risk, isolated in his room…

As she locked eyes with Mukuro, however, she also knew… Her movements were most certainly going to be restricted, and she would have to fight her way out…

Another part of her, deep down, didn’t want it to come down to that…

~~But did it matter what she wanted, anymore?~~

~*~

Nekomaru took a deep breath and exhaled, once they were back in Nagito’s room. It was where the luckster had decided to go for the time being, now that they were effectively briefed and dismissed for the day; and the team manager was in charge of watching over him. It bent the rules of groups of three, but… Chisa and Nekomaru knew each other, to a limited extent. The housekeeper knew she could trust Nekomaru, and he wasn’t about to shatter that trust. If Nagito tried something, he’d handle it.

‘sides, people would know if **he** murdered somebody. He didn’t have the brains to plan out a murder and execute them; he didn’t have the heart for it, either. The motive didn’t inspire him to consider murder a worthy option, and he definitely didn’t have the stomach for it after hearing about Hinata.

“We’re really up shit creek, huh…” The team manager rumbled, crossing his arms and taking a seat in a chair as Nagito flopped down lazily on the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a dead expression.

“Are you honestly shocked? With so many Hopes confined in one place for too long, we were bound to clash. Messages from loved ones after you guys lost your memories, naturally, you were going to take the bait. It was a foregone conclusion an incident would happen.” The luckster droned, leaving his arms lazily splayed out on the bed.

Nekomaru frowned at the way Nagito was speaking.

“Hey… You lost your memories, too, didn’t you? Or are you saying you’d never stoop to murder?”

Nagito barked out a short, bitter laugh.

“Me? Have someone to return home to? That’s preposterous! I’m not nearly arrogant enough to claim that I have the right to murder one of you shining beacons of Hope to save myself! I wouldn’t even have the heart to fool you all during the trial, so I’d be executed for a pointless farce. You’re all too **important** to kill… Best to just let trash like me become the sacrifice so that one of you could escape, but oh no, can’t trust the guy that started everything. He’s too **different** and **gross** and **beneath** **us** to be able to handle a simple task like dying… He can’t keep secrets! And of course, aside from endangering you all, none of you have a personal grudge to settle against me, so it’s little surprise things unfolded this way.” As his bitter and cynical tirade winded down, the luckster turned over on his side, away from Nekomaru.

The team manager’s hands tightened on his arms as he kept arms crossed, and his frown deepened in concern.

“Oi, Komaeda… Stop talking shit about yourself! You’re one of us! You don’t deserve to die any more than the rest of us do.”

The luckster scoffed virulently, thoroughly disgusted as he quivered in silent rage, keeping his back to the team manager.

“One of you?! Does everyone get a watchdog, then? Or am I the exception?” He spat, before he couldn’t contain it anymore and turned to face the team manager with a heated, venomous glare, clutching at his bedsheets in frustration. “ **I didn’t receive a letter** , **you gorilla**! I don’t have anyone that I can call ‘friend’! **I am nothing**!”

The white-haired boy panted, and maintained his glare as Nekomaru studied him carefully. But as usual, the team manager did not rise to his bait and get upset, even when he was called such a derogatory nickname.

“Komaeda… Why are you willing to believe what Monokuma told you?”

Nagito’s whole body trembled once again, and he hissed venomously.

“What?”

“Monokuma told us he fished those outta the sea, but c’mon, kid! Do you really think all our families and friends would just decide to send bottles out to sea for us to **maybe** receive? Didn’t Koizumi say somethin’ like that being a little too convenient?” The dark-haired man cocked his head in thought before shrugging nonchalantly. “Well, whatever. If you won’t take her word for it, or mine, think of it like this: If you really don’t have someone like we do… Then what the hell are you doing here?”

Nagito froze as he hadn’t expected a counterargument like this. He blinked and glared at the team manager warily.

“What… are you talking about…?”

“You’re here on Jabberwock Island with the rest of us!” Nekomaru reiterated himself. He arched an eyebrow curiously. “You don’t think that’s got any significance to it?”

Nagito’s nose scrunched up in uncertainty, and he was back to gripping his bedsheets testily.

“That… That doesn’t mean anything! If I just so **happened** to be with any of you guys when we were kidnapped and whisked away here… That doesn’t mean I have **friends**! It just shows my rotten luck hasn’t changed after all this time.”

“Bad luck, eh…?” Nekomaru rumbled. “You don’t see this as an opportunity?”

Bile rose up in Nagito’s throat as he clenched his teeth so hard they hurt. He squeezed his eyes shut in anguish.

“An opportunity? For what? Just more disappointment? I’m not… a fool. If I wasn’t friends with any of you before, it’s not gonna magically happen now that we have amnesia! Hell, for all **you** know, I might be the traitor Monokuma keeps talking about! And after what Pekoyama did? Why take the chance with scum like me?!”

Nekomaru hummed doubtfully, but did not outright deny Nagito’s words just yet. Instead, he gazed intensely into the luckster’s eyes and spoke heavily.

“Alright… If you really believe everything you’re saying, just tell me one thing.”

“What?” Nagito deadpanned, expecting a roundabout, backhanded question at best.

“You’ve brought up Pekoyama, but I wanna hear your thoughts: Hinata. How do you feel about him in all this?” The team manager asked with a serious face.

The luckster’s brow furrowed in confusion. This was a **very** roundabout question. He didn’t even know where the team manager was going with this.

“I… don’t have much an opinion at all, actually.” The white-haired boy mumbled uncertainly, still trying to search for any meaning in Nekomaru’s eyes.

They offered none to him.

“C’mon!” Nekomaru challenged him, face betraying nothing. “You’ve gotta have **some** thoughts, even if it’s only a couple.”

Nagito’s frown deepened, and his eyes averted to his bedcovers as he tried to piece together Nekomaru’s strategy. No matter how he looked at it, this didn’t seem relevant to him at all.

… Ah, maybe that was it. Nagito’s face deadpanned as he reached a conclusion. He didn’t much care if he was right or wrong… He assumed he had the gist of it, and that’s what mattered.

“It’s unfortunate what happened to Hinata, of course…” Nagito droned, flopping back on his back again. “But if Pekoyama’s Hope was strong enough, his death would have been a worthy stepping stone. If not for her, then for the rest of us.”

Nekomaru made a grunting noise in curiosity.

“Ah, so what you’re saying is that Hinata’s life is meaningless.” The muscled man rumbled thoughtfully.

Nagito’s brow furrowed in both uncertainty and frustration. No. No he had most certainly **not** said that.

“Though he is not aware of what his talent is, Hinata-kun is **still** one of you!” The luckster snapped back cagily. “That means he is a beacon of Hope, and therefore, is not **meaningless** …!”

Nekomaru picked at a persistent bit of earwax with his pinky.

“But you’d still rank Peko higher ‘cause you know **what** her talent is, right? Or is it her motive for murder that makes her more important?”

“If her Hope can conquer any Despair, then yes, Pekoyama is superior to all of us!” Nagito raved, throwing his arms up in the air exasperatedly. “That’s what I want to see, what I want to know. Who has the brightest Hope here? And how can I help them reach the heights they are destined to reach?”

“Kinda hard to do that when we’re dead, don’t you think?” Nekomaru tilted his head curiously as he resumed crossing his arms.

Nagito stiffened.

“Hope is born when we face a difficult trial… and what can be more harrowing than a friend’s death?! If we all die for the sake of one, we should be honored and privileged!” His words were passionate as ever, but there was a subtle nuance to them, this time… a desperate need to make Nekomaru **understand**.

“Alright… So, if we find out about Hinata’s talent **after** he dies, and it was somehow more important than any of us realized, would his sacrifice still have been worth it?” The dark-haired man quizzed him, and Nagito’s hands twitched up in the air as he kept his arms extended helplessly.

That… What? That shouldn’t be possible. What amazing talent could be out there, to warrant such an impossible question?

The white-haired boy conveyed his thoughts as such, and Nekomaru happily obliged.

“Togami-kun is gonna run the Togami Corporation, Nevermind is gonna run her country someday, and even Kuzuryu-kun is gonna run a whole yakuza empire… With all these famous leaders among our class, don’t you think it’s possible Hinata could be in charge of something just as important?” The manager asked rhetorically. “Would it still be okay if Pekoyama killed him?”

Nagito’s brow furrowed again in uncertainty. He shook his head jerkily.

“Surely, if he was, one of us would have heard about him… But even I never read anything about him on the threads online. We don’t know anything about Hinata-kun.” He whispered the last part to himself, more than anything else.

“But he **could** be, and he had his info suppressed, for reasons…” Nekomaru pointed out reasonably. “You didn’t hear anything about Ikusaba either, did you? Ultimates aren’t always black and white; the school scouts us when we’re the best in our fields. At the least, we can be sure that whatever Hinata’s good at, he’s the best in his field. You wanna gamble with his life, and regret it later?”

Nagito chewed the inside of his cheek anxiously. No, he didn’t. However, no one could deny Pekoyama’s resolve… She had a powerful Hope, churning within her. The more nihilistic impulses of his mind argued Hinata would be a worthy stepping stone, regardless…

Yet another part of himself was seeing what Nekomaru was saying. They didn’t know anything about Hinata. It’d be unfair to kill him off before they found out what his talent was…

~~Not to mention, Nagito **was** curious about it…~~

“Even if ya set the talent stuff aside…” Nekomaru reasoned, shrugging his shoulders again nonchalantly. “What if out of all of us, Hinata was your closest friend before our memories were wiped?”

Nagito’s pupils dilated as the team manager popped that question. He hacked and coughed as saliva went down the wrong tube and he sat up, pounding at his chest.

“Wh-What…? What the hell did you just say?!” Nagito snapped, glaring at the bulky man reprovingly.

“Without our memories, you can’t say anything for sure.” Nekomaru reasonably pointed out, and the luckster could feel his teeth grind together in aggravation at how **proud** the manager looked at approaching what must have been the coup de grace of his argument. “The only way you’re gonna know is if you give him a chance, Komaeda… Believe me. If the kid was up to somethin’, or he was gonna quit on you halfway, he would’ve done so by now. But out of everyone, he, Togami, and Yukizome-sensei are trying the hardest to connect with you. You can’t shut **all** of them out. Even if it’s just Hinata... Just give him a chance.”

Nagito’s shoulders slumped as his expression fell, lost in thought. True… Out of the three that the coach mentioned, Hinata was the least troublesome one, the least arrogant and condescending, too. Togami-kun was out of his mind, even if he meant well. Yukizome-sensei couldn’t show favoritism.

Hinata was… Hinata. They butted heads now and then, but the brunet still tried to have a friendship with him, against all odds. However…

“… He’s already got a posse to support him.” The luckster bitterly pointed out. “He doesn’t need me to butt in unnecessarily…”

“Shouldn’t Hinata be the judge if you’re a nuisance?” The team manager pressed. “If he really thought you were too much trouble, don’tcha think he’d avoid you and tell you to stay away?”

_‘He wouldn’t talk to me until we met up by sheer coincidence at the ruins.’_ Nagito wanted to point out, but he couldn’t fully disprove the man’s argument, either. Hinata **had** talked with him, and tried to be cordial. If anyone gave the cold shoulder, it was probably he himself…

“’sides!” Nekomaru belted out a hearty laugh. “Hinata’s friends might just be your friends, too, someday! You never know until you try. But if you just shove everyone away out of fear of rejection, then yeah – nothing’s gonna get done. Hinata’s already making the effort to reach out. Why not meet him halfway, eh?”

Nagito released a ragged breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding.

… It was entirely too optimistic to believe **everything** the team manager just suggested… But… So long as Hinata was willing to put up with him, he might as well at least humor the mysterious boy…

Might as well visit him later on, before nighttime hit. Friends visited each other when they were injured or sick… right…?

~*~

Chiaki hummed in slight concern as she gazed around at the music studio, while the sole other occupant glumly sat against the wall with guitars hanging on them. Ibuki’s eyes were puffy from fresh crying, and her hair was more unkempt than usual, but she’d cried her heart out a while ago.

There was a reason she hadn’t managed to say much of anything, when they all met up in the cafeteria…

“Mioda…” Chiaki tilted her head curiously, gripping the straps of her backpack. “Hinata-kun wouldn’t want you to be sad. C’mon, let’s hear you play!”

Ibuki bowed her head further and mumbled miserably.

“… Ibuki’s soul isn’t in it, Chiaki-chan… Hajime-chan almost joined Owari-chan and Saionji-chan, and then Byakuya-chan is beating himself up over Kuzuryu and Pekoyama’s stuff… And then Mahiru-chan and Mikan-chan are sad, too… Ibuki can’t play right now.” She drew her legs closer and buried her head in them.

Chiaki drew her hoodie up over her head, and sighed a little, too.

“Everyone’s sad, afraid, and on edge, Mioda… But… This is why we have to do our best, especially now! If we stay like this, a murder’s gonna happen again. And if that happens, everyone will be even more miserable. If it helps even a little… doing something like playing your music for everyone, or throwing a party, or playing video games, it’s gonna go a long way! And I know you, out of everyone, can help us bounce back! When you’re having a good time, everyone else is, too!”

Ibuki moaned into her legs a little.

“But Chiaki-chan, Hajime-chan and Byakuya-chan are always complaining ‘cause Ibuki’s too hyper all the time! Just ‘cause Ibuki is excited, doesn’t mean Ibuki isn’t listening! Ibuki always listens!”

Chiaki frowned thoughtfully. She thought that might be the case, that the musician was more perceptive than people gave her credit for. It’s not like the hyperactivity was a cover, but it did help numb the pain a little, that’s what the gamer took away from the minor rant.

The gamer waddled over to Ibuki and sat down on the floor next to her, patting the musician’s shoulder consolingly.

“Hinata-kun is… He’s reluctant to try things, because he has a low opinion of himself and what he can do. Every time he complains about you, it’s because he’s never had to interact with someone like you before, someone who can drag him on adventures and not be winded while hauling someone else along. But I can tell, even if he’s overwhelmed at first, he has a ton of fun! He’s always looks refreshed after he plays with you… Tired, but refreshed. Don’t take his complaints too hard. Togami-kun’s the same, though he handles it a little better because like you, he can run pretty fast.”

Ibuki looked over at the gamer, surprised by her insight. She never heard about what Hajime-chan looked like after they parted ways; she always assumed he just went home and crashed ‘til the next day.

“… Hajime-chan likes playing with Ibuki?” Ibuki mumbled. She wasn’t even gonna dispute the part about Byakuya-chan’s running… even that stunned Ibuki when she found out. Chiaki nodded in confirmation.

“He’s probably as surprised as you are.” Chiaki beamed, a hand over her heart passionately. “I think people enjoy life the most when they’re too exhausted to stress over stuff. By keeping him busy, and being there as his friend, you’re a great influence on him. He’s glad that you’re his friend; he’s glad that, even though he thinks his music’s not all that great, that you’re willing to rope him into your band.”

“Hajime-chan really said all that…?” The musician whispered in awe, to the confirming nod of the gamer. Ibuki averted her gaze to the floor, brow furrowing. “Ibuki plays really well when she’s with Hajime-chan… And Byakuya-chan, too! But Byakuya-chan hasn’t picked up an instrument yet… So it’s just been Ibuki and Hajime-chan. And now Hajime-chan’s teetering on life and death…”

Chiaki placed a hand on the musician’s shoulder consolingly.

“Hinata-kun will be fine! If you want to help him recover faster, maybe hold that concert, and he’ll just have to get out of his bed to come hear you play!”

Ibuki’s ears perked up at that, and she whipped her head around and stared at the gamer in awe again.

“Ibuki never thought of it like that! Ibuki’s gotta get those invitations out!” The musician sprung to her feet and scrambled for her notepad on the table that had her guitar on it and started jogging in place as she turned back to face the gamer. “Sorry, Chiaki-chan! Ibuki’s gotta run! Tell Hajime-chan Ibuki will be by later for snuggling~!”

Chiaki giggled lightly as Ibuki ran off excitedly. It really was good to have Ibuki back, re-energized… Hajime could use a pick-me-up like Ibuki’s bubbly energy.

… She’d probably literally try to pick him up, too.

Ibuki was affectionate like that.

~*~

Chisa buried her face in her hands as she shook her head, from where she was sitting on the bed.

“Pekoyama… Why didn’t you tell me…?” The teacher mumbled, distraught after listening to what the silver-haired girl was willing to divulge, for now.

Peko, who stood over by the window and was clutching her elbow anxiously, calmly closed her eyes and slightly bowed her head, facing towards the window.

“It wasn’t my place. You are my Sensei, but my loyalty must always be to the Young Master…”

Mukuro, who remained by the door, tracked Peko’s movements suspiciously.

“And that justifies murder, does it?” The soldier arched an eyebrow.

Peko’s shoulders stiffened, but she did not turn to face the dark-haired girl.

“… As a soldier, you should understand that better than anyone, Ikusaba. If your Commanding Officer says the word, you follow it without fail, unquestioningly.”

“As I understand it, Kuzuryu ordered you to stay out of this.” Mukuro narrowed her eyes dangerously. Peko lowered her arms to her sides and clenched her hands into fists.

“I act as my Young Master’s sword. At times, I must go against orders that are counterproductive to his will. In this case… he willed that Koizumi had to die, and he put his own life in danger – I was forced to act. Were you not willing to do the same for Komaeda, during the first trial?”

Mukuro silently snarled at the barb. Pekoyama had **no right** to lecture her…!

Chisa wrung her hands distressfully, feeling the tension in the room escalating too extremely.

“P-Pekoyama…! Ikusaba! That’s not the point here! Pekoyama, if you were really concerned for Kuzuryu-kun’s life, then your first priority should have been to come to me…!”

Peko blinked slowly and half-turned to the orange-haired woman, her brow furrowed in confusion.

“… I’m sorry?” Peko muttered.

Chisa rose from the bed and took a couple steps toward Peko, one hand extended helplessly.

“That’s the real reason you acted, Pekoyama… It didn’t have to do with what Kuzuryu-kun wanted. That’s just what you convinced yourself that it was about. Think about… think about the reasons that you’re loyal to him. It’s not some life debt that his family forced on you – it’s Kuzuryu-kun himself! You don’t want to see him hurt, and… and I understand how that feels, better than most people!”

Peko continued blinking in bemusement, before shaking her head slowly in denial.

“Sensei… I know it’s your job to try and understand, but I am a tool. I’m not like you, or even Ikusaba. At the end of the day, both of you are still human; it is natural for you to feel and to have desires, to have dreams. I want nothing for myself. I am just an extension of my Young Master.” She took a wary step back as the housekeeper closed the gap between them, but not quite coming into contact yet… But she was within reach, and that made the swordswoman more than a little uncomfortable.

“You’re not a tool…!” Chisa’s tone was needy, and expressed a desire to make Peko understand. “Pekoyama, you were scared of what Kuzuryu-kun might do. That’s why you disobeyed him, and why you tried to do what you thought he wanted! You’re **human**!”

Peko’s frown deepened and she shook her head a little more firmly.

“I’m not scared… I **can’t** want anything for myself. The Kuzuryu Clan molded me…”

Ah, there came the pleading grip on her shoulders. It was as uncomfortable as Peko imagined it would be. Chisa just held her gaze resolutely.

“They tried to turn you into a tool, but they failed!” The orange-haired woman stressed. “How long have you known Kuzuryu-kun?”

Peko just kept shaking her head, unable to avert her gaze with the housekeeper standing so close.

“I was a baby, left on the Kuzuryu Clan’s doorstep. I owe them everything. I owe the Young Master everything. I can’t be anything they don’t want me to be.” The letter she received as her motive had reminded her, as such. Compared to the Young Master’s documents, hers had been much more succinct, and came directly from the Young Master’s father, the current leader of the Kuzuryu Clan.

She must have overstepped her bounds, during school. It was the only logical explanation for the stern reminder. Perhaps she should have refused Hope’s Peak’s invitation… Was it not presumptuous to ascend to the level of an Ultimate, and be considered the same “level” as her Master?

Chisa shook the girl emotionally, keeping their faces together as her eyes burned with determination.

“Pekoyama…! This isn’t about what the Kuzuryu Clan wants, not here, not now. What does Kuzuryu-kun want? Does **he** see you as some sort of tool?”

Peko’s mouth went dry at that question. She shook her head more vigorously.

“Th… That doesn’t… No, it does matter, but… But sometimes, I must go against his wishes, because… Because it is like… medicine. He wishes for vengeance, so… So I will be the executor of his will… He doesn’t want a tool, but that puts him at risk…”

“You’ve got it backwards, Pekoyama!” Chisa refuted, startling the swordswoman further. “Kuzuryu-kun doesn’t need the medicine! Think about what you just said! He doesn’t want a tool. Why is that? What does he want for you?”

Peko swallowed thickly as she was forced to recall the Young Master’s repeated warnings. Of course… she knew… But it pained her so much, to think about.

“He wants…” She mumbled uncertainly, averting her gaze as much as possible, but still essentially failing to do so because of the housekeeper’s proximity. “He… He said that while we are here, we are just students. That our professional relationship no longer exists.”

And that pained her. That hurt worse than any injury she could possibly ever receive. To be dismissed so coldly… Being a tool was all that Peko knew how to do, so she fell back on that. Because it was useful to him, and that way they wouldn’t have to part ways, ever.

… Why did it hurt so much?

“Kuzuryu-kun doesn’t want a **tool**!” Chisa repeated, making the swordswoman flinch in anguish. “Pekoyama… he wasn’t dismissing you! He wants you to be yourself. To be your own person. But he still wants you in his life.”

Peko’s eyes widened and she looked to Chisa breathlessly as she tried to process what she said… But somehow, it didn’t seem **possible** to the silver-haired girl. It wasn’t proper, and it went against everything the Young Master’s family was grooming him to be.

“That… That can’t be true.” Peko croaked out, feeling herself go ghastly pale, and shaking her head even more intensely than before. “The Young Master is kinder than he appears, but he could never be that sentimental… He **can’t** …”

Peko was trying to convince herself of that, more than she was Chisa, at this point.

Chisa smiled fondly, raising a hand to the silver-haired girl’s face and wiping a few wet… wet… Wait. When had she started crying?

“Pekoyama, when a tradition does more harm than good, that’s when it’s time to make changes. That’s what Kuzuryu-kun is doing. I **know** that’s what he’s doing, because I know what I saw when he was telling you to behave, earlier. He wasn’t reprimanding you. He wasn’t punishing you. He wants you to stop trying to be someone you’re not… Because he doesn’t need a tool. He needs **you** , Pekoyama the person. You two have known each other since you were kids, and I bet he wants his friend back – the friend he had before his family took that away from him. That’s all he wants.”

The tears just kept silently coming, but Peko had finally stopped shaking her head. Chisa smiled wryly, and wiped a few more of them away before allowing the poor girl to cry her heart out. She patted the silver-haired girl’s shoulder consolingly.

“C’mon. If you don’t believe me, let’s hear it straight from the horse’s mouth. I asked Togami-kun and Nevermind-chan to help me question him, and we can make it a conference call… okay?”

Peko opened her mouth in an attempt to speak, but no words came out. She was too choked up. Chisa just took it in stride, and pulled out her phone. Mukuro watched the exchange, silent as she had had been for a while.

… That gave her a lot to think about, too…

~*~

Mikan fiddled with her hands anxiously as she stood by Hajime’s bed, his head was thoroughly wrapped up above the eyes and ears. Mahiru had quietly taken a seat over by the table, her stomach doing somersaults as her thoughts went in several different directions.

“M-Maybe I should take his temperature again…” The nurse mumbled, more to herself than to the photographer. “I-It has been a couple hours now… A-Anything could have changed…”

Mahiru’s eyes remained red, puffy, and swollen, and she didn’t think she had any tears left to offer up as penance… But still, she managed to head off yet another temperature check. Mikan had taken more of them than she realized.

“Tsumiki, just let him rest. He’s… He’s going to be fine. You’ve given him plenty of temperature checks, bandaged him up, changed his clothes, made sure he’s not too hot or too cold… You don’t need to treat him like… glass. He’s… He’s a boy. He’s… strong.” That was said without her usual heat towards males, was spoken more tenderly, and even had a pinch of admiration if you knew what to listen for. Her eyes did betray concern, but she was more guilt-ridden and she was more than a little furious with herself for putting the brunet in this position.

… But she couldn’t deny she was a little angry with him, too. Because what had he been thinking? Drawing Pekoyama onto himself? She could have **killed** him…! And I would have been her fault…!

Mahiru clenched a hand over her heart in anguish. Yet Mikan missed all of this as she squeaked and apologized profusely, bowing to Hajime and Mahiru both.

“O-Oh…! I-I-I’m sorry…! W-Was I being too annoying?! D-Do you think Hinata-kun w-will hate me…?” Mikan moaned to herself, not liking to consider that possibility. Hinata-kun had been so kind, so nice, offering to be her friend… What if she burned up the last of his goodwill by being a nosy, disgusting nuisance? He… He wouldn’t be able to look at her anymore, would he? Wouldn’t want to… to **talk** with her, to **tolerate her existence** …!

Mikan wrung her hands anxiously, the more her thoughts continued to spiral out of control. Mahiru opened and closed her mouth a few times before managing to form something coherent as she looked to the nurse in concern.

“Hate you…? Tsumiki, Hinata’s not that kind of guy!” He better not be. She barely knew him, but from what she’d seen, he was more responsible, mature, and considerate than Komaeda had turned out to be… Chiaki spoke highly of him, and Ibuki did, too. Not to mention, he’d saved her life! “He’ll… He’ll be glad you took care of him. Don’t worry about upsetting him. Hinata’s the kind of guy who’d get angry over you thinking so little of yourself!”

Mikan sniffled, but nodded timidly at the reproach, shrinking in on herself as she clung to a corner of his bedframe. Koizumi was right… Hinata-kun was nice like that. She’d… She’d try to not loathe herself as much… or at least not make it as obvious…

Her eyes glazed over as she got distracted and looked down at Hajime’s prone form on the bed.

“… Hinata-kun didn’t deserve this. Why did Pekoyama have to be so mean? Why didn’t Kuzuryu stop her?”

Mahiru paled as memories bubbled their way back to the surface. Phantom sensations burned across her body, and the redhead hugged herself, shivering.

“I-I… I don’t... know… It-It was so fast…Tsumiki, Kuzuryu and I didn’t even **know** she was there! H-Hinata was the only one who noticed… and he…” She trailed off helplessly.

Mikan’s lips thinned as she clutched the bedframe tighter.

“That’s right… you were there, too… Hinata-kun got hurt because of you…” The nurse whispered darkly.

Mahiru’s pupils dilated, and she looked to the nurse in both alarm and desperation.

“Y-You don’t think I know that?! I-I… I don’t deny it! It’s my fault… it’s all my fault, I kn-know that…”

Mikan’s cold, accusing eyes drilled into her mercilessly.

“It’s your fault! A-And, and, and…! And you just s-sit there, like y-you **deserve** to…!Y-You have no right!!!”

“I-I know that!” Mahiru cried out in anguish, shaking her head miserably. “Maybe I don’t d-deserve to be here… but… but I have to make sure he’s okay! I-I have to… apologize…”

Mikan’s eyes widened, though she apparently hadn’t heard the last part, which was mumbled.

“Y- **You** have to make sure he’s okay?!” Mikan puffed herself up like a bird, glare becoming more heated. “I-I- **I’m** his nurse…! N-Not you! **You** sh-should just s-stay away so he doesn’t get h-hit again…!”

Mahiru shrank in on herself, shaking her head morosely.

“I’m not… Y-You’re right, Tsumiki, but… But I can’t just… leave him be!” The redhead clutched at her heart again and looked off to the side in shame. “I-I can’t claim to be better at nursing than you… I can’t… care for him, like you do… But he’s still my friend! And I want to make things right with him, helping out however I can!”

And that was the truth. That was the whole truth. Hinata saved her life, and he got hurt because she’d been powerless to do anything. He was… He was her responsibility, now. She let emotions get the best of her, and he still saved her life.

Mahiru couldn’t let that go unrepaid.

Mikan quivered in frustration, but seemed to bitterly yield.

“It’s not fair…” The purple-haired girl sobbed. “I-I’m supposed to be his nurse…”

“You **are** his nurse…!” Mahiru scrambled to placate the shattered girl. “You’ll always be his nurse, Tsumiki. B-But… But we’re both his friends. Isn’t that… fair…?”

Mikan chewed her lower lip before hanging her head and shaking it bitterly again.

“I-It’s not fair… Notfairnotfair **notfair**!!!” The purple-haired girl stubbornly insisted, hands hysterically grabbing fistfuls of her hair as she did so.

“Wh-Why…?” Mahiru asked uncertainly, but still wanting to comfort the poor girl.

“B-Because once he has you, why would he want anything to do with me?!” Mikan wailed emotionally. Mahiru winced and shook her head in denial.

“Hinata cares about you, Tsumiki! Really! I promise, I won’t steal him!”

“Y-You’re just s-saying that…” Mikan mumbled, seeming to become self-aware of her projected anger, and shrinking in on herself worse than before. “No one wants to acknowledge my existence, once they have someone else… it’s always the same…”

Mahiru shook her head more firmly, rising up from her chair and approaching the flinching girl, grasping her by the shoulders and massaging them consolingly.

“That’s not going to happen.” Mahiru reaffirmed her vow, encouraging the nurse to look her in the eye.

Mikan flinched, but then squinted, trying to look for any sign of deception.

“H-How can you promise something that’s impossible…?” Mikan’s mouth became a thin line in frustration.

“Because we’ll **both** be your friends.” The photographer revealed, smiling a little as the purple-haired girl froze and stared at her in stunned disbelief, mouth agape.

“Y-You’ll… You’ll really… both be… mine…?” Mikan squeaked, not trusting herself or this situation as a whole. She trembled as both fear and excitement warred within her.

Mahiru just nodded in confirmation, not minding at all when the nurse glomped her and wailed, profusely spluttering thank you’s. Mikan deserved this much relief, at a bare minimum. Bullied all her life, others taking advantage of her kindness and confusing her on simple concepts like love… She and Hajime would definitely help this poor girl.

… And after all the stuff she’d heard from Chiaki and Ibuki, she could honestly admit she was curious about Hajime, too. She looked over Mikan’s shoulder, at the slumbering brunet.

_‘I hope you wake up soon…’_

~*~

“… I don’t know what I wanted to do, honestly.” Fuyuhiko grumbled, crossing his arms and looking off to the side with a huff. “Monokuma gave me a fucking autopsy of my sister! And he also helpfully included a fucking scrap of a case file to explain who did her in! That includes the bitch’s accessories, like the photographer bitch, the airhead, and the clingy nurse… Oh, and Saionji, too… I guess the latter three were just **buddies** with the bitch who did my sister in, but I didn’t care much about them when I saw Koizumi **fucking covered up Natsumi’s murder**! I **had** to talk with her! That was my goddamn right!”

The yakuza hissed as his hands convulsed over his chest in aggravation. Byakuya, seated in the chair across from the yakuza, frowned as he kept his arms crossed over his chest. Sonia hung back toward the TV stand, hands clasped in front of her waist, but appearing paler than usual. The cell phone, which had Sensei on a conference call with them, lay on the table between Byakuya and Fuyuhiko.

“Talking…” The heir repeated, like he was testing out the word for its distinct flavors. “I suppose most people bring baseball bats when they intend to just ‘talk’?”

Fuyuhiko growled lowly before shouting furiously.

“ **I said I didn’t know what I wanted, shithead**! That photographer bitch’s friend killed my sister, and then she fucking helped cover up the crime! I guess in the end, I had to have bagged the killer, ‘cause that’s what the case file Koizumi received said… But I must not have known about Koizumi’s involvement back then, ‘cause she was still breathing…” The blond sighed heavily, placing one hand on his hip tiredly. “I dunno what else you want me to say. Other than I screwed up, and Peko would’ve taken the fall for me if Hinata hadn’t been a fucking hero… All I can say is, I was looking for every excuse to call off a murder. Yeah, I know I got a nasty hair trigger. But y’know, I can be nice, too. It’s that bitch’s own stupid fault I was gonna flip my shit if Peko hadn’t done what she did. She just **had** to get all self-righteous and give **me** shit for murder, when her own childhood pal fired the first shot… It still pisses me off, recalling that shit!”

Sonia, who had not spoken for a while, cried out in distress.

“Th-That does not justify murder, Kuzuryu-kun…! Nothing can ever justify it…”

Fuyuhiko gave a twisted smirk as he gestured vaguely.

“Oh. So now **you** wanna lecture me, huh? After you almost bought into Komaeda’s bullshit?” He growled intimidatingly at the princess, who backed up nervously against the TV. “I’m not justifying anything here. I’m a fucking monster, **I know that**. Don’t misunderstand. But you assholes have no right treating Peko the same as me. You think she’s bad? Peko only knows how to kill ‘cause my family fucked her up. It’s not her fault she flipped, it’s mine for not being clearer. Peko… deserves to live. She was all buddy-buddy with you guys ‘til my crap with Natsumi came up. You can’t just ignore everything she was up until now. That’s the **real** Peko! Kill me if it’ll give you fucking peace of mind.”

“No one’s killing anyone.” Byakuya denied with a firm shake of his head. “Kuzuryu… it’s not as simple as identifying which parts of Pekoyama are real. The fact is, she can be spurred on to kill, if it means sparing you. Right now, we have to keep our eyes on both of you.”

Fuyuhiko slammed a fist down onto the table furiously, glaring darkly at the heir.

“ **It’s not Peko’s fault, dumbass**! You gonna lock up your friend now, like how Souda and Nidai were gonna lock up Komaeda?!”

Byakuya shook his head, frown deepening.

“No. Understand, Kuzuryu, this is not house arrest for what you two did… We are doing this because you two are going to be prime targets for the foreseeable future. People are upset, anxious. You two need protection as much as the rest of us do.”

Fuyuhiko scoffed virulently, hands clenching in front of his chest.

“I’m not a goddamn princess in need of saving! If you guys have a bone to pick, let’s go! I’ll throw myself on whatever knife you assholes pull on me!”

“And that is **precisely** whom you need the most protection from, Kuzuryu… yourself.” The heir flatly pointed out, making the blond recoil in shock. ”I know you feel guilt. You hide it behind bluster, and anger, but you fully intend to throw your life away if it will mean placating us. And we can’t allow that…”

Fuyuhiko snorted derisively, arching an eyebrow suspiciously.

“Why? ‘Cause suicide ain’t in your fucking dictionary?”

“Because your death will only invite more suffering… Or do you think Pekoyama is happy to hear how little you think of your own life?” The heir arched an eyebrow curiously.

Fuyuhiko’s mouth clamped shut at that. How the hell was he supposed to answer that…? And **not** sound like an ass?

~*~

Byakuya sighed as he stepped out of the yakuza’s cabin for a moment to have a strategy session with Sensei. Sonia had excused herself for the evening, and while it was a risk to leave the yakuza alone, Byakuya had done a sweep of the cabin – there had been no hidden weapons for Fuyuhiko to commit suicide with. Not to mention, he got the distinct feeling Fuyuhiko had been cowed when he was reminded of how Peko would feel, if he died. Byakuya raised the phone to his ear, taking it off of speaker.

“That… went about as well as we expected.” The heir pinched the bridge of his nose, ruefully shaking his head.

He could hear the wry smile in the teacher’s voice.

“You did well, Togami-kun! I really think we’re making progress. Pekoyama was distressed when she heard Kuzuryu talking like that, but she’s also processing the fact he does want her to live for her own sake, that we weren’t just assuming what he was thinking.”

The heir snorted lightly

“It’s only the first day, Sensei. If it’s all the same, I’m going to wait at least a week before I even think of dropping my guard… There’s too many variables now. We can’t micromanage everyone.”

“We can’t,” Chisa agreed sadly. “I know that. I know… another murder is probably inevitable now. But at least now it won’t catch us off-guard.”

“Don’t be too sure,” Byakuya answered back cryptically. “Pekoyama’s actions are understandable, but they have created an opening too large for us to board up. Anyone can crack under the pressure here, and they can use Pekoyama and Kuzuryu as scapegoats. We can’t let our guard down for even a moment.”

“We still have the GPS feature!” Chisa chirped. “And you’ve been watching where everybody is, right?”

“… Yeah.” Byakuya mumbled, pulling out the device in question and giving it another dutiful scan. “The groups have been fluctuating and changing, but I’m confident in my memory I know where everyone’s been. It seems like everyone’s returned to their cabins, by now. There’s a few stragglers, like Tanaka, Souda, Hanamura, and Mioda. But they still have time until 10pm.”

Chisa hummed neutrally, but seemed to agree with his assessment of the time.

“Yeah… I hope Hinata wakes up soon. Mioda still seems like she wants to throw that concert!”

Byakuya smiled wryly.

“Indeed. She contacted us shortly before the conference call. I’d tell her to hold off until things cool down, but I think she’s going to go through with it no matter what… And, well, I can’t fault her for it. Music is her life.”

“It’ll be good to have something to take our minds off all this!” Chisa mused happily, he could practically see the beaming smile even though the cell phones didn’t have the ability to video call.

The heir shuddered, however.

“Mioda’s music is… quite a diversion, Sensei. I’ll give it that.” Volume was the main problem with Mioda’s music… Though he wasn’t a huge fan of the metal genre, either.

… Perhaps Hinata would be a good influence on Mioda, after all. That hyperactive girl had played around with the genres while Hinata was playing drums, after all…

“… Hey, Togami-kun?” The tone in the teacher’s voice had shifted again, and he muttered back, keeping an eye on the GPS locations.

“Hmm?”

Chisa took a moment to compose herself.

“This… This has to work… right? We’re doing better than we were with the party. Everyone’s cooperating…”

Byakuya’s frown deepened.

“Well… I can’t say anything with certainty. Especially not now. We had one murder, and we almost had a second one. I think… regrettably, another one is inevitable. The most we can do is try to minimize the damage… And even that is difficult.”

“But Hinata-kun made it!” Chisa argued back, a slight panic to her tone. “And Kuzuryu and Pekoyama didn’t kill him or Koizumi… We can… We can stop this.”

Byakuya sighed patiently and ran a hand through his hair before turning back around to face Kuzuryu’s door, placing his hand on the handle.

“We’ll do what we can. We couldn’t save Owari or Saionji… For the moment, everyone else is still alive…” The blond muttered, opening the door back into the yakuza’s cottage. He froze when he saw the sight directly across from him.

An open window, and Kuzuryu’s phone was still in its charger. The yakuza himself was nowhere to be seen. The way Kuzuryu’s cottage was positioned, the window wasn’t facing towards the hotel’s main building like his and Hinata’s were – there was a small tract of land toward the back of the cottages on this side that led all the way up to the front gate, and Byakuya would have been none the wiser to anyone sneaking out…

And that’s just what Fuyuhiko had done…

“Togami-kun?” Chisa asked in concern, hearing him go quiet for so long.

“We have… a problem.” The heir reported gravely, narrowing his eyes.

What else could go wrong?

~*~

Ibuki muttered unintelligibly under her breath as she jotted down on her notepad while briskly walking on Second Island. She only paused to push open the door to the music studio, and then she was back to writing feverishly, not looking up as she walked. As she reached the recording studio in the back, practically on autopilot, Ibuki looked up from her notepad and gasped in shock at the sight before her… an empty table.

The notepad and pen slipped through her nerveless fingers, and the musician raised her hands to her face as it contorted in a horrified expression. Ibuki **always** left her guitar on the table! She never, ever put it anywhere else. She’d forget where she left it, otherwise. Slowly, shakily, Ibuki advanced toward the table in stunned disbelief. Just to be sure, she looked around it, even around the whole recording studio itself, and that’s when she spotted the wall closest to the table.

Ibuki’s brow furrowed and her nose twitched in curiosity as she edged closer to the wall. It’s not like it carried a distinct scent, but the musician couldn’t help being her usual expressive self, even when she was alone. Her eyes darted across the word engraved on the wall; the orbs reflected the word in the dim light that came from outside the recording studio… Oops. Ibuki forgot to turn on the light when she came in. Too caught up in the horror of her missing guitar.

“’Justice’? What’s that mean?” Ibuki tilted her head, perplexed. Justice for Ibuki’s missing guitar? No… Ibuki didn’t write this. Somebody graffitied Ibuki’s studio, and Ibuki wasn’t even here! They even stole Ibuki’s guitar and called it Justice! Ibuki should sue! At that moment, the sound of footsteps entered her ears, disrupting her train of thought. The musician turned around and cocked her head at the newcomer as they filled the doorway with their silhouette, their shadow cast on Ibuki. “Oh, hey…”

The newcomer approached casually, footsteps echoing as they walked…

…

Ibuki fell to the floor in a crumpled heap at the newcomer’s feet, unconscious, as the noise of a taser filled the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Tick tock goes the clock... And what now shall we play~?
> 
> Tick tock goes the clock... Now summer's gone away~
> 
> Tick tock goes the clock... And all the years they fly~
> 
> Tick tock~.... and all too soon, your love will surely die~"
> 
> DO NOT BE FOOLED, MY DUCKIES! .... I am most certainly prepared for your hatred. I've got my raincoat and umbrella. :3 
> 
> Ibuki was one of the survivors at some point before I was through posting the prologue in earnest. Unfortunately for her, her spot among them was thoroughly debated between, ooh.... two others? I HAVE to trim down the survivors to a specific number, and regrettably, Ibuki's loss seemed profoundly impactful to the cast, similar to Asahina's death in AIF....
> 
> XD But I know I'm gonna catch a whole lot more flak for this one. Do not hold anything back, my duckies. .... Because I sure didn't. And you ain't gonna be happy in coming weeks~ This is but a sneak preview, for the main event~ Prepare your analyses. Put on those thinking caps~ This one is gonna be a rube goldberg machine, in some ways. I LOVE SETTING THE MYSTERY-SOLVING TO HARD DIFFICULTY~ XD
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "  
> Bahahaha, I love the image of Ibuki Sonic-spinning her way through a window.
> 
> Also,  
> > … Why did Ibuki have to be so hyper all the time? She could ask the most embarrassing questions and not know the situation she creates by just asking them…
> 
> Byakuya, you sweet summer child, she knows EXACTLY what she's saying." - Bgottfried91
> 
> ...... I had to make this the comment of the week while I could. Ibuki is love~ Ibuki is life~
> 
> ... Ibuki might also, ah... be in trouble... just a smidge... BUT IT WAS FUN WHILE IT LASTED. Rest in peace, Sonic girl. I... I had so much fun with you. T^T
> 
> *whispers* May the remorse be with you all~


	18. Chapter 2, Part 6: The Writing's on the Wall

Hajime grunted as his eyes slowly fluttered open. His body felt sluggish, and his head was pounding. He was also… in his bed, in his room as he craned his neck to get a better look at his surroundings. With another grunt of effort, the brunet sat up uneasily, and that was when he locked eyes with the purple-haired nurse, who looked to be wiping a strand of hair out of Mahiru’s face as she slumbered in one of his chairs. It looked… uncomfortable, sleeping in that thing, but Mahiru had done it anyway.

The two of them froze, and it seemed like ages before Mikan inevitably screeched in shock.

“H-H-H-HINATA!” The nurse’s high-pitched squeak made Hajime cover his ears out of reflex, and he felt bad when it resulted in the purple-haired girl clamping her hands over her mouth anxiously, muttering muffled, desperate apologies.

At least he wasn’t sleepy anymore. And… it seemed like he wasn’t the only one who suffered the crude wakeup call. Mahiru groaned a little, shaking her head slowly before her eyes fluttered open, and her first impulse was to look past the nurse and over to the brunet, who was halfway sitting up off the bed and wincing in sympathy at her.

“… Hinata!”

Wryly, Hajime smiled and suspected he was going to be hearing that a lot, today… He slowly sat up more properly, and swung his legs over the side of the bed as he turned to face the girls as they approached. The brunet rubbed the back of his neck as he allowed Mikan to check his wound and bandages. He knew that was for the best; it was all thanks to the nurse he was even here, so… Well, Hajime suspected that was the case, anyway. No one else was as medically qualified as the Ultimate Nurse, and she was here when he woke up. Didn’t take a rocket scientist to piece it together…

Huh. It felt a little strange, how calm he felt about all this. Pekoyama had smashed his head while attacking Koizumi, and he didn’t feel the slightest bit, well… alarmed. Panicked. If anything, it was like the world was coming more sharply into clarity for him. Sights and features more distinguishable. Sounds more coherent and words more intelligible – he was mostly referring to Mikan’s hurried mutterings to herself, which sounded like medical jargon that he couldn’t make heads or tails of.

It was like a great cloud had been lifted… But Hajime still felt much the same. It was very strange.

“So…” The brunet mumbled as Mikan continued her checkup. “I died, huh?”

Needless to say, his small, self-depreciating joke fell on deaf ears. Mahiru flinched, averting her gaze, and Mikan petted his head consolingly.

“N… No! Y-You didn’t die! I m-m-made sure of it…!” Mikan heatedly denied, shaking her head feverishly.

Hajime closed his eyes and chuckled awkwardly.

“No, that’s not what I…” He then ruefully shook his head and smiled up at Mikan in gratitude. “Thanks, Tsumiki. I’m glad you were here, otherwise I would’ve been toast!”

Mikan trembled a little, clasping her hands together anxiously.

“E… Eh…? You’re… thanking me…? F-For being here…?” The purple-haired girl squeaked nervously.

Hajime just nodded and ran a hand through his hair casually.

“Of course! And it’s not like I’m grateful **just** ‘cause you’re useful… I mean, I promised we’d be friends. So… As my friend, thanks for looking out for me. I’m glad you’re here.”

Mikan swallowed thickly as her eyes widened in disbelief.

“R… Really…?” She whispered, her voice so small.

“Really.” Hajime confirmed, reinforcing his words with a kind smile. As Mikan slowly drank in the praise and gratitude, closing her eyes and beaming to herself, Hajime’s eyes roamed to the other person in the room, who was looking uncomfortable and guilt-ridden. “Hey, that goes for you, too! Thank you for looking out for me.”

Mahiru blinked before staring at the brunet in astonishment, a hand over her mouth in shock.

“Wh-Why are you thanking me…? I-I didn’t…” She mumbled, trailing off in uncertainty. Hajime just shook his head, though.

“My head’s still fuzzy on what happened around that time, but… I’m not dead, and you’re not dead, so… I figured you helped talk Kuzuryu and Pekoyama down at least until the others arrived? I mean, even if you didn’t…” He trailed off as Mahiru emotionally cut him off.

“K-Kuzuryu did a better job of that than me… And… And anyway, Kazuichi and the others showed up soon after you did. I-I didn’t do anything!” The redhead protested, a haunted look of anguish in her eyes. She clasped a hand over her heart anxiously. “You should hate me. I was going to die, and you took the blow meant for me…”

Hajime chuckled awkwardly.

“Well, it was a different blow, ‘cause Pekoyama swung a different way on instinct… If it was **your** blow, I definitely would have died…” He then shook his head and frowned thoughtfully. “And anyway, like I was gonna say, you still stayed by my side. You didn’t have to do that for the guy that butted in on your personal business. You could’ve left me in Tsumiki’s hands, but you stayed. I’m not going to hate you for being kind.”

Mahiru stared at the mysterious brunet, mouth agape in shock. This guy… Hajime was serious. She could tell he was serious. Hajime had nearly **died** , and he wasn’t the least bit freaked out or pissed off?

The redhead’s shock morphed into rage. Rage aimed at him for being so careless, rage aimed at herself for being the cause for his injuries, and… and rage on Hajime’s behalf – because he deserved to be pissed off. It bubbled up within her, and she placed her hands on her hips as her glare became stern.

“Being kind…?! Hinata, what the hell is your deal?! **How** are you not mad? You got **hurt** , and not just that, but you were almost **murdered**! You can’t just shrug that off!”

Hajime blinked slowly, seeming confused more than anything.

“H-Huh…? W-Wait… You lost me. You’re mad that… I’m not mad…?” He trailed off for confirmation, but Mahiru was only half-listening by this point.

“I’m the one who’s lost here!” The redhead huffed, hands remaining on her hips. “I mean, what were you even **thinking**?! Pekoyama was clearly out to kill! Y-You should’ve just… just… Gone to find the others! None of us knew you were there! I would’ve died, but… but you wouldn’t have gotten hurt, so…”

“K-Koizumi…” Mikan mumbled, hands fidgeting with her apron. She didn’t want fighting. Hinata had been through enough, and Koizumi hadn’t deserved to die, either… They both said they’d be friends. They **promised** …!

Mikan just wasn’t sure how to make them stop…

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck apologetically and bowed his head.

“W-Well, that… I just… My body reacted on its own.” He then raised his head to look back at the stern glare levelly. “Look, I know it was dumb. But what was I supposed to do? If I didn’t do anything, you’d be dead. If I distracted Pekoyama long enough, maybe you could have gotten away, or… or something. I dunno. I saw the door near you, and I thought it was the best choice available at the time. I just knew I had to… act. Ibuki’s always telling me to just go for stuff… I’m still learning. But considering we’re both here, doesn’t that mean we’re okay? You don’t have to worry about me.”

Mahiru trembled, her anger still bubbling over. This stupid, stupid, stupid… brave… selfless… idiot…

“Hinata, the ends **do not** justify the means…! I’m never going to accept that!” The photographer gripped her camera bag strap in anguish. “You’re way too reckless! Do you know how awful I would have felt if you **had** died in that beach house? Pekoyama wanted me dead, not you! And your death would have hurt Tsumiki, Togami, Mioda, and Nanami! At least I was asking for it, confronting a yakuza over stuff we don’t remember… You were just a bystander that got in the way!”

Hajime flashed a wry grin, confusing Mahiru further.

“Well, if you put it like that, we’re both in the same boat. I know you blame yourself for everything that happened, Koizumi, but you didn’t attack anybody! We’re all upset and on edge ‘cause of the motive Monokuma dished out, but all you and Kuzuryu were doing was talking… You didn’t come with a weapon, or intent to kill… You just wanted to talk. Right?”

And just like that, the rage within Mahiru evaporated, and she felt herself deflate at the brunet’s counterargument. Her shoulders sagged, and she looked at him in mild frustration.

“It… None of that stuff matters… I-I mean, I didn’t know confronting Kuzuryu would end up like… like that…” The redhead mumbled.

Hajime shrugged casually, giving her his best reassuring smile.

“And I didn’t know how Pekoyama would react to me. So, let’s just try to cool our heads, okay? You’re alive, and I’m alive. If you’re so worried about something like this happening again, let’s watch each other’s backs! At least then we can both help each other be less reckless. I don’t wanna see you hurt, either, y’know? I never want to see anyone else murdered. No one deserves to die.”

Mahiru took a shaky breath before reluctantly nodding, her eyes welling up with tears. This guy… really was an idiot.

As if she’d let him go off and be a ‘hero’ again… Not when it could get him killed. Whether she’d fully thought on it or not... whether she trusted him or not… Hajime was her responsibility now. She’d already decided.

… Hajime and Mikan both. She wasn’t going to let them down.

~*~

Byakuya massaged his temple as he leaned against the front of Kuzuryu’s cabin, phone to his ear once more. His scowl deepened.

“You’re **sure** Pekoyama didn’t slip out last night?” The heir pressed.

“Ikusaba and I stayed with her all last night, Togami-kun!” Chisa reassured the blond for the umpteenth time. “And if you got Kuzuryu-kun before anyone else got hurt, then we’re fine! Everyone’s fine…”

The teacher sounded like she was reassuring herself, more than she was trying to reassure her student, and Byakuya couldn’t blame her. If Kuzuryu didn’t kill someone himself, then he would have most certainly ended up a victim, somehow…

But that still left so many mysteries. Why **hadn’t** anything happened? Kuzuryu had been found lurking around the beach house again when they tracked him down, but no one had been around. Between Togami, Nevermind, Souda, Tanaka, and Nanami, they had scoured the islands in search of Kuzuryu. The first priority had been securing the possible people Kuzuryu would have snuck out to confront – namely Koizumi, Mioda, and Tsumiki.

Two of them had been with Hinata the whole night, and Mioda had apparently returned to her cabin around the time it was discovered that Kuzuryu had snuck out; the Togami heir hadn’t seen the musician himself, but an eyewitness had seen her, and between that eyewitness and the GPS, he took their word for it. It helped that Mioda’s concert invitations were delivered to their rooms that morning, slid under their doors in typical “ninja Ibuki” fashion – meaning she slid them under the door, knocked on the door loudly, and was gone before they opened the door to see who was there.

Everyone related to the incident with Kuzuryu’s sister was accounted for. Souda, Tanaka, and Hanamura had all been accounted for as well. He’d personally checked in on Komaeda, Hinata, Tsumiki, and Koizumi; reassigned Nidai to guarding Kuzuryu… Togami had done all of this, and he still felt so ill at ease.

“… He won’t talk.” Byakuya took a deep breath, and exhaled. “I can’t think of any other reason for him to remain silent. I just can’t shake the feeling… that something has happened. But I know everyone is still alive, so something **can’t** have happened… If Kuzuryu would just talk to us, I wouldn’t feel so uneasy. Yet as we know, if it is related to Pekoyama in some way…”

“… He won’t betray her.” On the other end, Chisa bit down on her lower lip anxiously. Truth be told, she had a bad feeling, too. Even though she could personally guarantee Pekoyama wasn’t related to any possible incidents last night, that wouldn’t matter if Kuzuryu-kun thought she was. “Togami-kun… maybe we should all just enjoy Mioda’s concert today.”

Byakuya’s eyes snapped open and he blinked in shock.

“Y-You… You actually want us to go through with that? I hardly think this is the time…” He trailed off as the teacher spoke up again.

“Now might actually be the best time for it!” Chisa argued back, knowing she was coming across as a little forceful. “Togami-kun, this might just be good for all of us. Tsumiki called; Hinata’s awake. Everyone’s anxious with an attempted murder. And for all we know, we prevented another murder attempt last night. Kuzuryu and Pekoyama might also open up if we let them at least see each other! We… We have to try.”

Byakuya curled one hand into a fist and looked down at it, a number of different emotions cycling through him.

“… I understand.” The heir murmured softly. “It might quell my worries, too. Seeing everyone in one place… Unlike the party I threw, Mioda is orchestrating this concert all by herself… No one has room to suspect ulterior motives. This is for everyone’s sake. I agree, this needs to happen.”

“Then I’ll trust everyone to be at the beach in just a couple of hours~!” Chisa chirped, hanging up the call, deciding to end it on a good note.

Byakuya stared down at his phone with a sense of resignation, even though he shouldn’t be feeling that at all. Everyone was alive. Everyone was safe. Between himself, Nevermind, and Yukizome-sensei, it was working. They were straining themselves to hold the line, to keep everyone calm, but there were no fatalities. No one seemed eager for blood, with Hinata serving as a reminder of just what would happen if another murder occurred.

… So why did he feel like he was overlooking something?

~*~

“You are sure the numbers are inconsistent with reality…?” Gundham asked archly, arms crossed as he and the mechanic stood in the service shop.

“I’m tellin’ ya! There was definitely eighteen containers, dude!” Kazuichi grumbled, temporarily removing his beanie and running a hand through his hair. “I know they were all here last night! I was fillin’ mine up when the crap with Kuzuryu happened.”

“Then perhaps three were misplaced, while you used the fourth…?” The breeder offered as a suggestion, only for the mechanic to shake his head, bending down to pick up one of the plastic containers.

“See? This one’s partly used ‘cause I filled up my ride! Four whole things of gas disappearing doesn’t just… happen!” Kazuichi explained, setting down the container and crossing his arms in frustration, mirroring the breeder’s pose.

“Well… with all of us looking for Kuzuryu last night, mayhaps four of us replenished their scooters’ energy!” Gundham proposed next, grinning smugly. “The truth is always so simple.”

“Except I said when you guys needed refills, you let **me** know!” Kazuichi grumbled, shaking a fist in aggravation. “You and I didn’t even use scooters last night, so that left Togami, Nanami, and Sonia-san, and I can’t think any of ‘em would just take the gas, y’know? Each container can fill up about two scooters. They’d at least leave the empty containers for Monomi or Monokuma to refill or restock!”

Gundham buried the lower half of his face in his scarf as he looked off to the side, eyes narrowed.

“Kuzuryu was unaccounted for a span of thirty minutes. Perhaps he stole it while we were all out looking for him.”

Kazuichi groaned as he facepalmed.

“That’s right…! That little asshole… What’s he need that much gas for anyway?! Was he just gonna keep running around so we wouldn’t catch him? I think one of the scooters is missing, too. He probably ditched it somewhere, the jerk!”

“He is indeed a devil for distressing the Dark Queen.” Gundham inclined his chin in approval of the mechanic’s ire towards the yakuza. “He should be thankful I do not smite him for last night’s inconvenience… My four Dark Devas and I were set back in our hellish rituals for nearly an hour because of that fool! Does he not understand that the cosmic balance depends on my efforts?! Even now, the fate of all life on this planet rests on my shoulders! The height of his foolishness is staggering…”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

“Uh… Y-Yeah… Sure. Hey. You don’t mind keeping this from Sonia-san, do ya? I-I don’t want her to worry when she’s got so much more going on…”

Gundham quirked an eyebrow curiously.

“You would have me withhold the truth from the Dark Queen? You have quite the courage to order me around, Kazuichi Souda…”

Kazuichi grunted in annoyance.

“Hey, hey…! It’s not like this missing gas stuff has to do with anything! Like you said, it was just Kuzuryu bein’ an asshole! Once I track down the scooter and gas, everything will be fine! It’s not like you’re **lying** to her…! You’re just… not bothering Sonia-san when there’s nothin’ to worry about.”

Gundham hummed noncommittally.

“… I would hate to disturb her more than necessary. Very well. I shall aid you in your search.”

Kazuichi recoiled slightly at the suggestion.

“E-Eh…? But… Weren’t you gonna meet up with Sonia-san in a bit?”

“Then we had best hasten our quest!” Gundham boomed with his raucous, theatrically evil laughter. “I shall not keep the Dark Queen waiting, yet I shall not abandon you to your fool’s errand! We shall put this inconvenience to rest, once and for all!”

Kazuichi nodded slowly. Yeah. Yeah! This wouldn’t be hard at all. ‘Sides, if someone just used the gas and ditched those empty containers somewhere, that’d count as littering, right? Somebody couldn’t have used ‘em yet… Definitely not Kuzuryu, ‘cause they caught that little asshole.

There was nothing to worry about.

~*~

Chiaki made a puffy face as she stared at the screen. Well,, that had been… unexpected.

“I can’t say I’ve ever seen someone roll a 60 before… Your luck is OP.” The gamer mused without any heat or frustration behind it. Sure, she’d just lost in spectacular fashion, but it’d been in the eleventh hour, and she couldn’t deny the beauty of that roll.

… A roll that should have been impossible, but the Ultimate Gamer would admire the feat, anyway.

“Hahaha… Well, what do you know. I guess my luck’s still good for some time to come.” Nagito chuckled weakly, taking her comments in a more negative light as he set his controller down.

Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully.

“It makes me want to see the kind of results you’d get with RNG games… Fate: Grand Order players would drool over the spoils you’d get from simple rolls… probably.”

Nagito blinked owlishly.

“You’re not… angry you lost?”

Chiaki beamed at the luckster sincerely, hand over her heart, throwing him for another curveball.

“Some games even the playing field by adding that element of luck. I chose this game ‘cause I wanted it to be fun for you, too. Hinata-kun gets frustrated sometimes when it’s one-on-one with me, so I didn’t want the same to happen to you, not right off the bat.”

Nagito’s eyes widened in his astonishment, and his arms dropped to his sides.

“You didn’t have to go so far for trash like me, Nanami! You’re supposed to be the Queen of the arcades. It should be a foregone conclusion that the rest of us lose spectacularly whenever you’re competing. I hope Hinata didn’t give you too much grief?”

Chiaki shook her head lightly.

“Hinata-kun gets frustrated more with himself than me. He just wants to find what he’s good at, but I think you guys put way too much focus on talent. You’re not gonna find happiness by finding what you’re the best at; you’ll find it by playing with others and making memories! That’s why I never make it a competition with you guys; not really. If we’re both having fun, then we’re both winners.”

Nagito looked down, lost in thought.

“… People seem to be saying that a lot, lately.” The luckster muttered. “But do you seriously think scum like me can ever be accepted among the group? I started us down the path of murders…”

Chiaki tilted her head curiously, gripping the straps of her backpack.

“Have you thought about any of the murder stuff ever since the Class Trial?” When the luckster didn’t reply, the gamer nodded slowly. “I kinda get what you wanted to happen. I mean, you wanted us to not stress about the motives Monokuma gives us, or even the deaths that might come; but the thing is, people are gonna worry and mourn, no matter what. We’re human. All kinds of stuff gets to us, and it varies on person. I can tell you’re starting to understand that… so, don’t beat yourself over the past. It’s up to the others whether they want to forgive you or not; for those who give you a chance, you don’t have to push those people away – they’re not going to reject you later or anything. Just take it day by day! Maybe the others will come around once you show change. You never know until you try.”

Nagito processed the gamer’s words before flashing a small, bitter smile.

“Ah, Nanami… You don’t have to worry, Nidai already gave me a pep talk… But… Thank you. I don’t deserve it, but your overflowing Hope and kindness touches me.” The luckster spared a look at a nearby clock. “Now then… we should probably get going. It’s almost time for the concert.”

Chiaki nodded in agreement, the both of them rising out of their chairs.

“Yeah… The beach on this island, right?”

~*~

They weren’t the first to arrive, but they weren’t the last, either. Chiaki, Nagito, Hajime, Mikan, Mahiru, Nekomaru, Fuyuhiko, Byakuya, and Chisa were all there. That left seven unaccounted for, and that had the heir constantly looking down at his tablet, which showed the GPS tracker locations.

“Pekoyama and Ikusaba are en route from the hotel…” The blond muttered. “Everyone else is on Second Island… They should be coming soon.”

They’d better be. It’d be in poor taste for Ibuki to be late for her own concert, which was scheduled in ten minutes, at 11am. The large speakers had been dragged over to the beach, so that just left the musician in question, and her guitar… Curious how Ibuki hadn’t brought that over yet, but then again, she hadn’t wanted anyone but herself to touch that… So maybe that was why she lingered at the music studio.

Hands stuffed in his pocket, Fuyuhiko muttered, not able to look the heir in the face.

“That’s good, yeah? Everything’s fine.”

Byakuya’s grip tightened on the tablet a little, mouth thinning. The yakuza was not helping his unease. Yet a few minutes later, the breeder and the Princess showed up, much to the heir’s surprise.

“Nevermind?” He squinted down at the map of Jabberwock Island. Her phone was in the embassy.

… Although looking at the blonde in her wetsuit, which was most certainly damp, he shouldn’t be surprised she didn’t have it directly on her…

“My apologies! I thought I should enjoy a swim before the concert, but I lost track of time! It was fortuitous Gundham found me when he did.” The Princess beamed pleasantly, and the breeder hid his rosy cheeks behind his scarf, muttering under his breath.

“That leaves Souda, Hanamura, Mioda, and…” Byakuya trailed off with narrowed eyes. “Where does Pekoyama think she’s going?”

White-knuckled, Fuyuhiko raised a fist in outrage.

“The hell are you talking about, fatass?! You said Peko was on her way here!”

“I did.” Byakuya gnashed his teeth. “She was almost here, but then she broke off from Ikusaba and is now crossing the bridge over into Central Island… I can only assume her destination is somewhere on Second Island, but **why**?”

Chisa bit her lower lip in concern.

“… Togami-kun, why don’t you go see what’s up? I’ll hold down the fort here.”

Fuyuhiko was already moving before the heir agreed to do anything.

“Then I’m going, too!” The yakuza growled impatiently.

“Hey, wait, Kuzuryu…” The team manager moved to stop him, but Byakuya held out his hand.

“Wait. I’ll go with him, Nidai. Help Sensei hold down the fort here.”

“Like **hell** I would’ve let you stop me, anyway!” Fuyuhiko griped, he then gestured to Chisa in a ‘gimme’ motion. “Phone! Give me my fucking phone!”

Chisa blinked before complying, and he took it from her waspishly before stalking off. Hajime looked like he was going to volunteer to go along, but Mikan and Mahiru both held him back, and the heir thought that was a sound idea; the brunet didn’t need to get caught up in any further incidents. Byakuya hurried after the yakuza, and it wasn’t long before they encountered the Ultimate Soldier, who was looking out at the bridge to Central Island.

“Ikusaba! What is going on?!” Byakuya demanded as they ran up to the dark-haired girl.

Mukuro’s blank stare turned on the blond pair before her face rapidly paled.

“Y-You’re here…” The soldier’s words and stare were focused on Fuyuhiko, who gave her a strange, puzzled look in return. “But… Pekoyama said…”

“What did Pekoyama say?” Byakuya pressed, but Fuyuhiko was already whipping his phone out and dialing a number in the contacts.

“C’mon, c’mon, c’mon… Pick up…!” The yakuza hissed, clenching his free hand so hard that it popped.

Byakuya just kept his expectant stare on Mukuro, who finally caved, still looking peculiarly nervous.

“Pekoyama’s heading for the library on Second Island…” The soldier murmured softly, hesitantly. Her eyes never left the yakuza heir, who was still trying to call the swordswoman. “If he’s here, then she’s walking into a trap. W-We should go…”

Byakuya’s eyebrow arched curiously. There was a story in there… a story he **would** be hearing after this ordeal was over. But naturally, the soldier had the best plan of action, and Fuyuhiko was already on the move ahead of them. Though it sounded like Pekoyama had finally picked up on the other end.

“Put it on speaker.” Byakuya barked while he and Mukuro kept stride with the yakuza, and Fuyuhiko flashed a rude gesture, but complied anyway.

“Young… Master…?” Peko sounded winded; and indeed, if she was running all the way from First Island to the library, any of them would have needed to catch their breath at some point.

“I told you not to call me that!” Fuyuhiko snapped. “Where the hell are you going?”

Byakuya stared down at the GPS locators. She was past the ruins now, and almost to the library. They were just now crossing onto Central Island. As they progressed further, they could hear something over the speakers… some kind of crackling.

“I… I’m here… I’m here, Y… Fuyuhiko.” Peko uneasily corrected herself, and despite sounding mildly fatigued, she got right down to business. “Where are you?”

Fuyuhiko’s eye twitched as they began running across the bridge into Second Island.

“The hell do you think?! I’m chasing after you!” He barked. At her evident confusion, he cut over her heatedly. “Never mind that! What do you see?! Fatass over here is getting his panties in a bunch, and you’re the only one that’s got eyes over there right now!”

That seemed to disturb the swordswoman.

“T-Togami is…. with you…? Wh-Why…?” The silver-haired girl stuttered, and then she released a gasp without thinking. “Th-This is…”

A vein appeared on the yakuza’s forehead, and he shouted impatiently.

“What?! What the hell do you see?!”

“…” Peko hung up the call, much to their shared aggravation.

“We’re almost there!” Mukuro pointed out, as they reached the ruins. And indeed, in just a couple short minutes they reached the library’s entrance.

When they got inside… It was unlike anything they were expecting to find. The first thing they had to do was maneuver around the chandelier, which had fallen in front of the entrance and barred their immediate access. But once they did that, the real horror awaited them. They were literally stepping into an inferno. Bookshelves, the floor, chairs, tables, they were all aflame indiscriminately; it was a bit lucky the areas closer to the front hadn’t caught fire, too – but that at least allowed them to catch glimpse of Peko, who had moved further into the inferno, and was frozen standing over... over…

What was that…? What the hell was that?!

“ **Peko**!” Fuyuhiko hollered, and she instantly whipped around to face the newcomers.

“F-Fuyuhiko…” The swordswoman muttered softly, vulnerably, but that didn’t hold their attention for long. No.

That honor belonged to the monitor going off, nearby.

“A body has been discovered~!” Monokuma’s voice rang out. “Now then, after a certain amount of time has passed, the **Class Trial** will begin! Get your lazy asses over to the library! A rescue vehicle is helpfully en route, too~!”

The screen flickered off. Byakuya’s eyes, which had never strayed from the… charred husk on the floor, snapped to attention as he looked around at those present.

“We’ll have to come back in after Monokuma has put out the fire… It’s too dangerous right now. We need to leave.”

“Togami…” Mukuro mumbled. She recognized the body, too… what was left of it. She herself felt mixed about the victim – Hinata was definitely going to be crushed.

Byakuya simply turned his back on the scene, squaring his shoulders and taking a steadying breath.

“Now isn’t the time, Ikusaba. We have to go.” He followed Fuyuhiko and Peko, who went along the other side of the chandelier, and departed the library.

Mukuro spared one last look at the body, and then followed Byakuya. Strangely, she felt as if they were abandoning their classmate here… but… The Body Discovery Announcement confirmed it for them.

It was too late for Ibuki. All they could do… was track down her killer.

Soldiers could pull off miracles on the battlefield… but no one can raise the dead.

~*~

Ironically, just like last time, Monokuma obnoxiously showed up in a firetruck, and put out the fire. In the few minutes he was doing that, everyone else arrived outside the library. Even Hanamura and Souda, who had never gone to the beach on first island.

“T-Togami-kun…!” Chisa, face ghastly pale, ran up to the heir, who was watching over the yakuza and swordswoman with Mukuro. “Wh-What happened? Wh-Who… Who d-died…?”

Byakuya took a slow, steady breath.

“That… should be obvious, Sensei. Everyone else is here. The only one absent is… Ibuki.” He hollowly declared. There was no joy or satisfaction in arriving at this conclusion before everyone else. And more than that, he felt absolutely drained, even though running all the way here was no challenge for him.

… Losing a dear friend tended to have that effect. He felt even more tired, watching the horrified reactions to this news; seeing the crushed looks on Chisa and Hajime’s faces especially hurt, but it would do no good to spare them the truth.

They had a pending investigation to get to, after all… And they would be losing another classmate, by the end of this.

His bones ached from the mere thought of the proceedings… He felt so, so tired…

“M-M-Mioda…?” Mahiru whispered hoarsely. “H-H-How…?”

For a while, no one spoke. However, eventually Byakuya answered.

“We will have to confirm what we can, but… At the very least, she was burned quite thoroughly. This will make the autopsy quite difficult. And the crime scene itself will be a nightmare…” The heir muttered, raising a finger to his temple astutely.

Teruteru quivered fearfully.

“Sh-She was burned alive…? That’s…”

None of them looked very eager to investigate, and Byakuya couldn’t blame them. Seeing the body for himself had made him want to wake up from this nightmare. He’d had to grit his teeth and bear investigating Owari’s death, and then later watch Saionji get executed.

But now Ibuki was murdered… and he could not allow this murder to go unpunished. Perhaps it was selfish of him, vengeful even, but Byakuya didn’t care. Owari’s death had been tragic, but it had been an accident – the murderer this time could not claim the same, not with a crime scene like **that**.

Mikan tittered nervously, looking around at the group anxiously.

“M-Mioda was alive just this morning, wasn’t she…? H-How could someone kill her? Wh-Why would they kill her…?”

Kazuichi scowled, pointing at the yakuza heatedly.

“I’ll bet he did it! He was pissed off at Koizumi, wasn’t he?!”

Fuyuhiko glared back at aggravation, raising a challenging fist.

“It wasn’t **me** , shithead! I was under house arrest, remember?! How the fuck would I have snuck out and smoked that broad?!”

“That didn’t stop you from getting out last night…” Gundham rose to support the mechanic’s claim, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the blond.

“She was just alive this morning, you ass!” Fuyuhiko roared. “ **I didn’t do it**!”

“Well, maybe Pekoyama snapped again…” Teruteru pointed out, rubbing his chin and frowning nervously. “I mean, we know she was willin’ to do it, right?”

Peko bowed her head and gritted her teeth. Fuyuhiko’s face grew slightly purple as he looked like he might pop a blood vessel from the pent-up rage.

“The **fuck** you just say, asshole?! **Peko was under lock and key** , **too**! Neither of us could’ve done this shit!”

Nagito rubbed his chin speculatively.

“From what I remember, though, Pekoyama was the first one on the scene… Fires don’t take that long to spread – five minutes to consume a house, if I recall right. How long would you say it took to catch up to Pekoyama, Togami-kun?”

Byakuya uneasily averted his gaze, crossing his arms.

“… A few minutes, at least But Komaeda. You forget she was running here, too. That would have cost her time.”

Nagito shrugged casually.

“If the scene was already set up, all she would have had to do was light the fire. Just saying it’s a possibility!” The luckster crossed his arms, mirroring the heir as others began to murmur speculatively.

Hajime frowned at the direction this discussion was heading.

“Hold on… I mean, we can say anything’s possible at this point. We don’t even have the Monokuma File, or even gotten a look at the scene! Rather than throw around accusations, let’s… let’s investigate. Going into this suspecting any one person is gonna color our perceptions of what we find…”

Mahiru whipped her head around to him, shocked he’d come to the swordswoman’s defense.

“Hinata…?” She mumbled. But Hajime wouldn’t return her look; rather, his gaze was locked on Fuyuhiko and Peko, who were staring back at him, similarly baffled at his attitude.

Byakuya just smirked proudly at the brunet’s assessment.

“Hinata is correct. We barely know anything, so let us gather information, alibis, and testimonies, as we did last time. The truth will come to light. We mustn’t rush it, or we **will** pay the price.”

Sonia massaged one arm, averting her gaze as she paled in terror.

“We must do it again…? I-I thought… after the last time…” She mumbled dejectedly.

Nekomaru rubbed the back of his neck.

“I think we all thought we learned our lesson… But we’re all people. Monokuma gave us a new motive, so someone panicked and lost their shit! Guess we can’t judge ‘em ‘til we know why they did it, but… regardless, they gotta own up to the shit they did! They have their reasons, we have ours! We’ve got everyone here to think about…”

No one could object to that… No one could respond to that. Eventually, Monokuma reared his head as he always did…

… Was he wearing that damn pirate hat with the fireman’s outfit?!

“Alright, ya scumbags! I enjoy people thinking adoringly about me as much as the next bear, but I was sneezing up a storm in there, and it was pissing me off!” The bear rubbed the back of his head bashfully. “Well, what ya gonna do~? You crazy kids got the ball rolling again, so I gotta say… Congrats, Killer-san! I was entertained from start to finish, so I will overlook your technical infringement of the ‘littering’ rule~! Ya kept the camera and monitor intact in there, so, I’ll let it slide. Just cover your tracks, and no purposefully giving yourself away, and we won’t have problems! If you don’t play ball, I might just have to punish you-know-who instead…”

Uneasy silence met Monokuma’s challenging words, and somebody just had to ask for clarification…

“H-Hold on… Are you saying the killer had an accomplice?” Mahiru asked warily, eyeing the bear suspiciously.

Monokuma straightened up before shrugging uncaringly.

“Who knows? You kids know I have a strict No Spoilers policy~!” The bear covered his mouth, releasing muffled giggles. “Although that’s just for you guys… For the viewers out there, they already know the killer like I do~… And they’re probably pretty salty right now~! Aw well. No skin off my nose! I’m laughing my ass off at this one… You guys are in for a real treat~! But it’s dangerous to go alone, so you’d better take this! The Monokuma File 2~!”

With that, Monokuma distributed the file like he had last time, and mock-saluted them.

“If you have any questions, they must be submitted to the network in writing~! C’mon, gang, ya got a mystery to solve!” Monokuma guffawed at his own bad humor, and then obnoxiously took his leave, driving away in the firetruck with the siren sounding.

… If they felt tired before, they felt utterly exhausted after listening to all that. And it didn’t help, seeing Ibuki’s profile on the Monokuma File 2. Nor the brutal picture of her charred, blackened corpse, lying on the floor…

Hajime’s heart ached, the longer he looked at it. But he clenched a fist in determination. He would get to the bottom of this – who killed Ibuki, why they did it, all of it. He’d do it for the girl that helped him stop hesitating all the time… to just have fun, and not worry about everything.

He squeezed his eyes shut in anguish. He would never regret saving Mahiru… But he wished he could have saved Ibuki, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *starts the "Doomsday Machine" soundtrack from Despair arc* Ufufu. My duckies, it is here. The glorious, sensational investigation of our beloved musician. Let's think real hard about who killed her~ What will be the most Despair-inducing outcome...? :3 
> 
> I suppose Despair is highly subjective, erratic, and chaotic. So it's an unfair question. But I look forward to the theories as you start to pore over the Wall of Evidence again. This one's loads of fun. :D
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "Mikan...
> 
> Mikan, no.
> 
> MIKAN, CALM DOWN GIRL.
> 
> Phew, that nearly went nuclear. I really hope Mahiru and Hajime manage to help her." - Pyruus
> 
> I really love how you all fear and dread Mikan-chan so. It warms the heart~ n________n Mikan-chan is simply the "yandere" route.... Well, she has that potential....
> 
> *taps chin* Huhm. I wonder if that gives her a powerful motive to kill Ibuki?


	19. Chapter 2, Part 7: The Writing's on the Wall

“Ibuki…” Hajime mumbled, staring down at the charred, blackened husk of his friend. He clutched his chest in anguish and squeezed his eyes shut tight to avoid looking, but the damage was already done… The sight of her body was carved into his mind, every detail.

Much of her hair had been burned away by the fire, and her clothes were in tatters, too. There’d been tape over her mouth, and the way her body was positioned, she must have been tied up… The little remaining pieces of rope confirmed this. But the most important detail was how burned to a crisp Ibuki’s body was… Compared to the areas around it, the body looked a lot dryer, too – the first floor was pretty drenched from Monokuma’s “firefighting”, but not the body. How the heck was Mikan going to give an autopsy with the body in this state? It looked so… so **raw** …

… He supposed it was also a bit strange he remembered the body and the first floor in such crisp, crystal clear detail from just one observation… But right now he was too grieved to puzzle over it.

The one thing they altered about the crime scene was the chandelier – they removed it from the library so they could have full access to the crime scene. With Nekomaru, Gundham, Kazuichi, and Mukuro’s efforts, they lugged it outside the building. Once that was done, they had all gathered inside and got a full, unabashed view of the state of the crime scene. Reactions were… expected. Grief. Outrage. Shock. Fear. The killer was likely the most afraid, out of all of them… but that didn’t narrow down the possibilities. Fear could be masked. Fear could be used as a mask. It all depended on the killer’s strategy.

Byakuya took a deep breath and addressed everyone.

“I have no doubt Monokuma has us on the clock already… We have to split up.” Even as he said that, the heir turned to Sonia and Chisa expectantly. Hajime winced at the gesture, and he could see Mahiru grip the strap of her camera bag tensely. The photographer got what she wanted; the heir wasn’t the Class Rep. But in a situation like this? Sonia meant well, but she was not the manager of people like Byakuya was.

A part of Hajime hoped Sensei would take a more proactive lead. If the look Sonia and Chisa shared was any indication, it seemed like he might get his wish.

“I… I will leave most assignments to Sensei,” Sonia remarked, her hands fidgeting anxiously as she glanced down at Ibuki sorrowfully. “However, I do believe Tsumiki-san and Koizumi-san should remain here at the crime scene. I am sure their alibis are strong, and their talents will be put to good use here…”

Chisa nodded proudly, smiling a little at the princess.

“The rest of us should probably spread out. One or two more can remain here, but everyone else needs to leave and help investigate other areas.” The orange-haired woman frowned thoughtfully. “Kuzuryu-kun, Pekoyama-chan, I don’t like doing this to you guys, but we’ll need to keep you in your cottages for the investigation. At least until you start talking about what you know.”

Fuyuhiko grunted, crossing his arms and looking off to the side bitterly.

“Sure. Lock up the crook that’s had eyes on him all night and all morning. I don’t even care at this point.”

Peko tensed up at the suspicion directed at Fuyuhiko, opened her mouth to object, but a glance from Yukizome-sensei stayed her tongue. A sympathetic look from Mukuro helped the swordswoman to loosen up, but she still seemed uneasy about all this.

Kazuichi pointed at the yakuza heatedly.

“Hey! We still don’t know what the hell you did last night! Sonia-san said you were loose for, like, a half hour!”

Fuyuhiko clenched a fist and snarled at the mechanic.

“That’s none of your damn business! Mioda was found dead this morning, yeah?! Then she was killed this morning!” He whipped his head around the room furiously, glaring at all of them. “Or what? Is all that bullshit with the cellphones just smoke and mirrors?! Togami was so certain it’d **help**!”

Spittle flew out of Kuzuryu’s mouth as he snarled the last bit. For his part, Byakuya kept his arms crossed, though Hajime noticed the heir’s grip on his arms tighten, and his face became very carefully blank and calm. The brunet could only hazard a guess as to why Byakuya seemed keen on maintaining his composure here.

“The system has helped provide a clear picture of everyone’s whereabouts.” The blond stiffly replied, before raising a finger to his temple. “Rest assured, I will be reviewing that information before the trial – I won’t leave a stone unturned. Nevertheless, your movements last night must be taken into consideration, Kuzuryu. Understand, your actions as well as Pekoyama’s are integral in uncovering the truth of this case. You do not live in a vacuum. Whatever happened, it surely played a part in… this.”

A heavy silence fell over the remaining students as Byakuya gestured towards Ibuki’s corpse. No doubt, the heir’s words brought comfort to a great many of them; Byakuya had to be right. He wouldn’t lie about the GPS proving everyone’s alibis…

Hajime assumed that was what most of them believed, anyway. He, himself, saw through the heir’s deflection and dodging of the real issue at hand: Was the GPS’s info accurate? Most likely… not completely. Already, he could see a few possible loopholes that could have been exploited – Sonia’s phone, for example, was left at the Novoselic Embassy. That didn’t mark her as the killer on that evidence alone, but it did put a dent in her alibi. And that situation alone opened up a wide range of possibilities regarding, well… everyone.

If one person could have cheated the system, anyone could have. Thinking about it that way, he could see why Byakuya would want to keep quiet about… loopholes. They would be revealed in the trial, regardless, but maybe they could trap the killer in a false sense of security until they had to address that. If you’re overconfident, you’re bound to slip up and make mistakes.

As for the stuff involving Kuzuryu and Pekoyama… Hajime wasn’t all too clear on the details regarding them. For now he only knew about the events that led to discovering the body. But if anything did happen last night, he was sure they’d need to go over that… No doubt, Byakuya was also smoothing feathers so that they would ‘assume’ Ibuki died in the morning, and not at any other time… Again, overconfidence could prove to be anyone’s undoing.

Hajime could see the gears were turning in Nagito’s head, too. He didn’t know if the luckster had puzzled anything out, but he could reasonably guess Nagito had worked out there was a strategy to the way the heir was conducting himself, controlling the information being distributed. Hajime wondered how Nagito would behave this round.

Chisa clapped her hands together, smiling as widely as she could.

“Okay! Ikusaba and Nidai will watch over Pekoyama and Kuzuryu in their cottages. But we still need to look into Mioda’s cottage and the music studio, as well as the cause of the fire and everyone’s alibis.”

Byakuya, finger still raised to his temple, chipped in again.

“I’d also like someone to inspect the beach house since that’s where we found Kuzuryu, last night.”

Chisa nodded sagely in agreement and brought down a fist into her palm.

“So, how about we split up as follows? Nanami-chan, we’ll leave Mioda’s cottage to you. Souda-kun and Tanaka-kun, we’ll leave the music studio to you guys. Komaeda-kun and Togami-kun, you can inspect the beach house. Nevermind-chan, Teruteru-kun, you guys are with me for right now!” The orange-haired woman announced happily, and then at Hajime’s inquisitive gaze, she added, “Hinata-kun, why don’t you go where you feel like you need to investigate? You could stay here for now with Tsumiki-chan and Koizumi-chan, or you can go investigate other areas if you want. I’m pretty sure out of all of us, you have the strongest alibi!”

That seemed to mollify Mikan, who had seemed mixed about her assignment from Sonia, and Mahiru appeared more relaxed, too. No one else objected either; they all knew the brunet had been knocked out until that morning, and he didn’t even have a motive for killing Mioda – he was the closest thing to someone they could trust, and after everything that had happened… It was refreshing to have someone like that around. Hajime just gave a thin smile and nodded; he was good with starting at the crime scene. There seemed to be way too much here for Mahiru to sift through on her own, even if she was taking pictures.

Byakuya nodded slowly.

“I’m sure you all need no reminders, but investigate well. Any information you find could prove to be an invaluable lead; nothing can be trivial when our lives are at stake. For us, for Mioda… We must uncover who killed her.”

Even though this was their second investigation… This was still a tense, messed up situation that they were all adjusting to.

… But like Byakuya said, they didn’t have a choice. It was investigate, or die.

~*~

Hajime took a deep breath before accessing the Monokuma File 2. He was ready to confront this.

_‘The victim was the Ultimate Musician, Ibuki Mioda. She was estimated to have died within 1-3 minutes. The scene of the crime where the body was discovered is inside the library on Second Island. Cause of death was the result of smoke inhalation from having fuel poured over them, and then set on fire. Consequentially, victim’s body possesses many third- and fourth-degree burns, charred black. Victim’s body was wrapped tightly in rope, thoroughly restraining her, and mouth taped shut. Aside from the burns, victim had no other conspicuous external injuries directly related to cause of death, and no traces of foreign substances like drugs were discovered.’_

The brunet felt bile rise up his throat as he read the text and examined the pictures… He compared them to the image of Ibuki’s body that he could see in his mind’s eye, and he had to credit the sadistic bear for accuracy… Still. Who could kill another person in such a way, much less someone as bright and innocent as Ibuki? This was far too cruel…

“Wh-Who could do this…?” Mahiru was reading the Monokuma File 2 alongside him, and she now had a hand clamped over her mouth in horror, her face deathly pale.

Hajime squeezed his eyes shut mournfully, not blaming the photographer if she felt physically ill from just reading that. The worst part was that this had happened to someone they knew, a friend. He lowered the file and gazed around the crime scene with determination; Mikan was kneeling on the floor and looking over Ibuki’s body already, not relying on the file for information but her own expertise and knowledge. She was too engrossed in her work to be talking with them right that moment.

“I dunno… But I could probably tell you ‘how’ they killed Ibuki. Same way they set this place on fire.” He pointed at an object near one of the Monokuma statues in the middle of the first floor, and Mahiru’s eyes traced his finger’s path to it. Upon first examination, it just seemed like another unfortunate victim of the blaze, the object wasn’t even whole anymore.

… But even with it being burned in half, you could hazard a guess from the general shape of the thing, not to mention the guitar strings…

“Ibuki’s guitar…” Mahiru murmured, recalling the vivid stories about it. That’d definitely do the job, if the stories were to be believed.

“It had a flamethrower device attached…” Hajime muttered, rubbing his chin. “Fire doesn’t take long to spread with enough fuel lying around, but that thing is severe overkill; it’s really no wonder this place was torched like it was. Still, we should be asking ourselves **why** they went to such extreme lengths.”

Mahiru tilted her head in confusion, hand gripping the strap to her camera bag.

“What do you mean?” To her, murder was ‘extreme’ enough as it was.

“Well, Ibuki was tied up and silenced.” Hajime gestured at the body, frowning. “Letting the fire grow out of control is just gonna attract attention. Not to mention the repeated trips it would have taken, to get the fire set up. I just… I can’t see that taking place in the middle of the morning like this, when anyone could be walking or riding through Second Island.”

Mahiru blinked in astonishment as she thought about it that way, a hand raised over her mouth in shock.

“You’re right! It seems way risky… But… Oh… Do you think that’s why Ibuki came in here? She followed someone suspicious?”

Hajime shook his head firmly, frown deepening.

“If Ibuki came in here, I can’t imagine it was by her choice. Lots of problems with that scenario. For one, Ibuki would’ve been the last one to arrive, and I think she’d notice something was up and ran away at the first sign of trouble. Two, Ibuki’s phone was at the music studio when Togami checked the GPS while we were waiting at the beach. I can’t imagine Ibuki would just… up and leave her phone behind to tail someone suspicious, then get close enough to be restrained and then killed. Ibuki’s many things, but she’s not stupid; she’s smarter than most people give her credit for.”

Mahiru dipped her head a bit, brow furrowing.

“O-Oh… I guess that makes sense. I was just also thinking, maybe that was why the chandelier was brought down. You know? To seal off her exit?”

Hajime hummed thoughtfully, scratching the side of his head as he looked in the general area where the chandelier had been, pieces of glass were still scattered around where it had come to rest.

“I don’t think that’s what the chandelier was for. Pekoyama, Togami and the others managed to get in here without moving it; we just shifted it outside so that we could all stand in here. You would’ve had to be on a higher level to release that thing; and if the intent was to crush Ibuki, that obviously failed. The Monokuma File reported no other external injuries directly related to her death, and the killer definitely would have had to finish her after causing a ruckus like that. So, if Ibuki was never pinned down by the chandelier, and she wasn’t trapped…”

Mahiru placed her hands on her hips and scowled.

“Well… maybe the killer didn’t know it would seal off the exit! And maybe Ibuki was so startled, she didn’t think to try going around it! This is the only way in and out of the library!”

“… No. No, it’s not.” Hajime shook his head, turning his body slightly in the opposite direction of the front entrance, and pointed. “It’s a really bad idea to construct a building like this and **not** have at least one other way to get out. We only bothered to pay attention to the one, since the other way doesn’t normally take us anywhere useful. But it’s there. And Ibuki would have used it.”

Mahiru blinked slowly as she once again followed where he was pointing, only to find…

“A fire exit…?” It was roughly half the size of the front entrance, but there was a door back there, and it was marked as an emergency exit. Hajime nodded.

“There’s no rules saying we can’t use that door; we just normally wouldn’t, because it leads to the rear of the library, and there’s nothing back there.”

“You’ve looked back there before?” Mahiru tilted her head curiously, and Hajime ran a hand through his hair and frowned.

“Well, no… But… Just come and see for yourself.” The brunet answered, leading the way. As he pushed open the door and stepped out, allowing Mahiru passage, she poked her head out and understood right away. “The paths back here loop back around to the front, but that’s about it. The rest of it’s just… surrounded by water. I’ve noticed the paths leading around the sides of the library before, but I never bothered to look because, well… I knew this place was right next to the ocean. Even if the view’s a little pretty, you can see roughly the same thing from anywhere else on Jabberwock.”

Mahiru nodded slowly as she processed this information and drank in the view. The paths were large enough you could walk back around the building and not fall into the water. And with no rules against using the door, Ibuki could have used it… The door wasn’t that hard to find, being on the opposite end from the front entrance, so the chandelier ‘trapping’ Ibuki in **would** have been pointless… Well… Maybe with a couple exceptions.

She and Hajime returned inside before she proposed her next theory.

“Okay, you have a point about the fire exit – but what if the killer blockaded this exit, too, somehow? And then removed the blockade after killing Ibuki.”

Hajime shrugged casually, crossing his arms and looking over the ashen room shrewdly.

“I can’t think of why they’d do that… If they couldn’t remove the blockade from this side, they would’ve had to go around outside to remove it, and that’s just more chances of being seen. Let’s just assume, at least for now, that this fire exit is exactly the way we found it – useable and accessible. It doesn’t make much sense for the chandelier to fall over before Ibuki’s either restrained or dead; it didn’t actually block the entrance, and Ibuki had another way out if it had. I don’t know why the killer made the chandelier fall or why they made a huge inferno in here… but I don’t think any of this was tied specifically to the circumstances of Ibuki’s death. Trying to get people’s attention while you’re murdering someone is like tying a noose around your neck. All that does is drag both you and Ibuki down together. They would’ve had to hate Ibuki a lot for that, to the point of not caring about themselves, and I don’t think any of us had a motive that powerful to target her specifically.”

Mahiru nodded sadly, eyes averting to the floor.

“So… she might’ve been killed elsewhere, and then brought here. Then the killer did all this other stuff to point us towards the body…”

Hajime’s brow furrowed at that assessment.

“Maybe… But there’s still a lot of things we have to confirm. Like if Ibuki was killed and brought here for somewhere else; it seems a lot riskier to lug around a corpse on your back, even if you ride here on a scooter. But that’s not all – we all arrived after Togami, Ikusaba, Kuzuryu, and Pekoyama discovered the body. If the killer really slipped out and went around, it would have had to have been before Pekoyama showed up, and they would’ve had to know others were coming in order to avoid being seen by Togami, Kuzuryu, and Ikusaba. Sure, it probably would have been easy to slip in while everyone was showing up… but we were all outside the library. They would have had to **precisely** slip out from the side of the library once the initial party went in to discover the body, before running off and then return, acting as surprised as the rest of us.”

“What’s wrong with that?” Mahiru tilted her head curiously.

Hajime’s frown deepened. Nothing particularly was **wrong** , but…

“Well, just think about where we all were, at the time the body was discovered. Most of us remained at the beach on First Island while Togami and Kuzuryu went off to fetch Pekoyama; they ran into Ikusaba on the way, obviously. The only ones **not** there with us were Souda and Teruteru. I’m not saying it couldn’t be them, but under this hypothetical setup, they’re the only ones that could pin a murder on anyone. And that’s…” It narrowed down the suspects’ list all too quickly. They shouldn’t jump to suspecting people without more evidence. Alibis could be fluid, and change based on evidence.

Mahiru gestured vaguely, shrugging nonchalantly.

“Well, if they’re being set up… Then it had to be Pekoyama! She’s the one who made a beeline straight for this place. And we know she has the determination and willingness to kill!”

Hajime grimaced. He had a feeling this was going to go downhill real fast, and not just here, but during the trial. Kuzuryu and Pekoyama were in the hot seat already; no, it wouldn’t be a stretch to think one of them caved. What did they have left to lose, being under lock and key? The worst part was, he could see the makings of a plan for the two of them to have cooperated with one another. It was still hazy, some details needing to be clarified, but if the killer really did have an accomplice, Kuzuryu and Pekoyama were the most infamous ‘duo’ on the island. The premise would be one of them set up the scene, while the other performed the killing blow and posed as a discoverer of the body. And given the circumstances, there was only one way that setup could have worked…

But was it really like that? Despite everything that happened, the second chance they’d been given, did Kuzuryu and Pekoyama really stoop to kill?

… And if they didn’t, then who set them up to appear as though they had?

“I… I’m not sure if she would have.” Hajime hedged, averting his gaze when Mahiru stared at him in bewilderment. “I mean, it’s **possible** … But we need evidence, Koizumi. We can’t just keep spitballing theories – we need proof. We need… a lead…”

The brunet trailed off as something caught his eye, amongst a pile of ashes over by a bookcase close to where Ibuki’s body was. He briskly walked over and scooped the item up; similar to the guitar, a large chunk was burned up, but this item was made of latex, and there was a lone eye staring up at him from the front of it, the hair was blonde.

“Is this a… mask?” Hajime mumbled, brow furrowing at the sight of it. He heard Mahiru gasp before she rushed over herself and confirmed with her own eyes.

“It **is**! It’s that dumb mask all over again!” The redhead crossed her arms and scowled furiously. “Around the time you collapsed, I saw that mask lying over by the bench in the beach house! I dunno the story behind it, but I pretty much ignored it ‘cause you took priority. If that thing’s here, Kuzuryu and Pekoyama are definitely behind this! The fact they tried to burn it up cinches it!”

Hajime’s brow furrowed as he stared down at the burned up mask. So Kuzuryu and Pekoyama did have this thing?

“Do you know what might’ve happened to it after that mess in the beach house? I’m assuming Kuzuryu and Pekoyama didn’t take it with them.” The brunet mused, rubbing his chin in thought.

Mahiru’s frown dipped as her brow furrowed, too.

“I… dunno. But I don’t think anyone else would’ve paid attention to it, not after what they did to you! They should’ve been the only ones to know about it.”

“But you saw it…” Hajime pointed out, holding his hands up peacefully when the photographer raised her voice in outrage.

“You don’t suspect **me** , do you?! I told you, I was right there by your side ‘til you woke up! Tsumiki can vouch for me!” The redhead huffed.

“That’s not it!” Hajime wearily responded, dropping his hands and taking a deep breath. “I’m just saying… if you saw it, there’s no stopping anyone else from having seen it, either! That’s all I’m saying.”

Mahiru shrewdly watched him for a few moments before reluctantly nodding, clasping her hands behind her back and dipping her head slightly, apologizing for the overreaction.

“Well, I guess so long as you understand… But seriously, what are the odds someone else found it? Who’d care about that weird mask?”

Hajime zoned out a little, and he mumbled under his breath.

“I dunno… But we shouldn’t rule out the possibility.” The mask was a clue, he was sure about that…

He just didn’t know where the clue would lead them. Unbeknownst to the brunet and redhead, the nurse had been watching them for a while.... 

Those eyes were blank, and perhaps a little unsettling with how intense she was watching them...

~*~

The beach house was like how Byakuya remembered it – clean… with the exception of the bloodstain smeared on the floor from when Hajime collapsed. Nobody had stopped by to clean that up yet… Monokuma hadn’t bothered. Why would he? Hajime hadn’t died.

But perhaps that was for the best. As gruesome and disconcerting as the stain was, it served as a heavy reminder that they were all human. A life should never be taken lightly. Not here, not in this godforsaken situation…

Then again, he doubted Hajime would want to return here if the stain remained. It would be insensitive to his Assistant’s feelings to leave this grizzly reminder here. Byakuya made a note to return later and mop it up himself. It would be rude to force the duty onto someone else, when such a thing had slipped his own mind.

Nagito rubbed his chin speculatively, gazing around the main room of the beach house.

“I wonder, Togami-kun… What do we hope to find here? It’s a fair detour from the library. Even if Kuzuryu-kun was found loitering here last night, just what is the significance? Nothing happened here, right? Well… Nothing **else** , I mean.” The luckster gestured vaguely at the bloodstain on the floor, and Byakuya’s eyes narrowed at him.

“It’s our duty to examine every possibility, Komaeda. Kuzuryu is a person of interest in this investigation, and he wouldn’t have been here last night without a reason. If it was to retrieve something, I’d like to know what he took. If it was to drop something off, I want to know what he hid here. If it was to meet with someone… No, he shouldn’t have been meeting with anyone. No one would want to see him, unless it was to try and kill him. And no one else was seen loitering around this beach house.” The heir crossed his arms and wandered towards the shower room, opening the door and peering inside.

Nagito raised his hands grandiosely, a grin spreading across his lips.

“It’s hard to believe neither you or Sensei investigated this place until now! Really. If Kuzuryu was so suspect, you’d definitely have looked into this place before now. What distracted you?”  
After finding nothing of interest in the shower room, Byakuya emerged from it and scowled at the luckster.

“I would appreciate if you’d refrain from scathing comments. We never looked deeper into it because everyone else was alive, and in their cabins. The priority was returning Kuzuryu to his room before any trouble started. Once that was accomplished, we could put the investigation into this beach house on hold for the time being.”

Nagito’s grin widened as he crossed his arms.

“Were we all in our cabins, though? I wonder… The GPS tells us where the phones are, not the people. It’s a great thing to give us, but it’s so easily exploitable…”

Byakuya’s grip on his arms tightened as he kept his arms crossed. His mouth became a thin line.

“Nanami, Nevermind, Souda, Gundham, and I never encountered anyone else in our search for Kuzuryu, except for Hanamura. He had his phone on him. And I personally escorted him back to the hotel, due to the unknown nature of Kuzuryu’s escape from his room. The search did take half an hour, but everyone was accounted for. I’m sure of it.”

“Even Mioda?” Nagito tilted his head curiously, arching an eyebrow.

Byakuya nodded stiffly.

“Ibuki was accounted for, last night. She, Koizumi, and Tsumiki were at the highest risk with Kuzuryu loose, so naturally I ensured they were all safe before expanding our search outward.” He raised a finger to his temple astutely. “Furthermore… She delivered those invitations for the concert, this morning. Even you should have gotten one.”

The luckster and heir shared a staredown for several tense moments before Nagito shrugged casually.

“Oh, don’t mind my caution, Togami-kun!” The luckster waved a hand peacefully, chuckling lightly. “I’m just solidifying the basis of our investigation, you know? Mioda had to have died sometime after dropping off those invitations. That’s what the evidence and testimonies tell us. And if that’s what they say… We really have no room to argue, do we?”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes at Nagito suspiciously.

“No. We don’t. I assure you, everything that has happened, all of our movements, I have it all engraved in my memory.” The heir stubbornly insisted, not giving the luckster an inch in concession.

“I just find it so weird how the Monokuma File left out the time of death…” Nagito pointed out, face becoming serious for once instead of smug, and it was then that Byakuya had to do a double-take as he recoiled in shock.

“Y-You… You noticed that detail as well?” The heir regarded the luckster warily.

Nagito just shrugged nonchalantly, keeping his arms crossed.

“I notice a lot of things, Togami-kun. I might be trash compared to the rest of you stunning Ultimates, but I’m still an Ultimate in my own right. And I found it peculiar that Monokuma gave us an estimate of how swift Mioda’s death was, but not the time it was clocked in. If that’s anything to go by, that’s not something we can overlook. Especially when we consider the state of Mioda’s body…”

Byakuya arched an eyebrow inquisitively.

“Just what do you mean? The body…?” Nothing had particularly stuck out to him…

Nagito simply gave a raspy laugh in response, again raising his hands grandiosely.

“Hinata-kun noticed it, too! I’m sure of it. Despite just waking up, he seems much more perceptive; I can tell just by looking at his eyes. Everything else was hosed down from Monokuma’s firefighting efforts, but the body was remarkably **dry** … Unpleasant to look at, but not the least bit wet!”

Byakuya’s brow furrowed. To be honest, his mind had been on so many things at the time, but now that Nagito mentioned it…

“Hinata…” The heir murmured softly. Speaking of things he hadn’t done a better job of – checking on his Assistant should have been higher on his priorities. He might not have been the leader anymore, but he’d taken the burden of both Pekoyama’s attempted murder, as well as the murder of Ibuki, and saddled them on his shoulders out of guilt. What happened to Hajime had been his fault because he’d been negligent again; and then Ibuki had paid the ultimate price for that same negligence… His body posture slackened, but he kept his arms crossed as he gazed at the luckster with tired eyes… He was so, so tired. Failures stacked up, and this incident with Ibuki was particularly harsh to bear. “… Komaeda. I have to know. Are you really going to help now? You were so determined to push us away. This seems… unnatural for you.”

Nagito placed one hand on his hip and stared down at the floor in disappointment.

“I can hardly blame your own suspicion, after our last exchange. Still, I must confess I’m too curious about Hinata now to give up all our lives to this killer. Even if their Hope is powerful… It can’t outweigh all of ours. Not when we don’t know who Hinata is, and how powerful his Hope ‘could’ be. That’s why, at least just this once, I’ll side with you guys. Or more accurately… I’m siding with Hinata.” He casually waved again, chuckling lightly. “Isn’t it strange that out of everyone, I trust the one we know the least about? I’m sure that makes me even more suspicious, in your eyes.”

Byakuya closed his eyes and offered a small smile.

“Not at all. Because you’re wrong.” The heir reopened his eyes and gravely stared at the luckster. “The Hinata we know now, that’s who he really is. Regardless of his history or talent, this is the greatest expose of him that we are ever going to get. It’s our duty as his friends to accept him for who he is, regardless of what we find out about him later. I’m sure you would prefer his friendship over any possible talent he might possess.”

Nagito hummed, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

“Well… It’s not as if I haven’t considered that aspect as well. I do wonder why you are so fixated on this concept of ‘identity’ and why it matters what I find most interesting about Hinata…” The luckster lazily waved again, laughing lightly. “But I won’t turn this into a huge argument again. You, Nidai, and Nanami have given me much to think about, but now’s not really the time to get into that, anyway. Though I’ll admit it’s my fault we got sidetracked.”

Leaving it at that, they proceeded to search the closet for any clues. What they found, tucked away at the back…

“This is… This is one of the bottles Monokuma distributed as the motive.” The heir frowned in confusion, grasping it by the neck because…

“And it’s got a bloodstain smeared on it…” Nagito pointed out astutely. “Not only that, but it’s all dried up; this bottle must have been used as a bludgeoning weapon, but not recently.”

Byakuya’s brow furrowed.

“And there’s a crumpled piece of paper inside…” After uncorking the bottle, he withdrew the sheet and straightened it out for them to read.

“Well! I guess this explains why Kuzuryu was so worked up.” Nagito chuckled, even as Byakuya folded the paper and pocketed it. The luckster raised an index finger with a widening grin. “Togami-kun, what are you going to do? I’m sure if you take that to Kuzuryu, he’ll deny all of it. Nothing productive will come from confronting him about it.”

Byakuya advanced toward the door, back to the luckster.

“Then it’s a good thing it’s not Kuzuryu I’ll be chatting with.”

~*~

Teruteru poked his index fingers together anxiously as he averted his gaze from the orange-haired woman after she’d silently read the motive he’d received from Monokuma, sweating nervously and shivering as he stood there.

“I-I… I… I know it looks bad, b-but I would n-never… I w-would never kill **anyone** …!” The chef wailed, clenching his hands into fists and quivering in dread. “Y-You have to believe me, Sensei! Please!”

Chisa smiled softly at the portly boy.

“Hanamura-kun… I believe in all of you. But one of you did kill Mioda, and I do have to concede you had the motive and the opportunity to do it…” The teacher loathed having to admit that much, but everyone’s lives were at stake. Again.

Her shoulders slouched in guilt and exhaustion as the thoughts weighed her down. Another murder… This time it had been Ibuki. Sunny, infectiously radiant Ibuki… Who in the world targeted that poor girl? Who killed her so **brutally** …?

It wasn’t fair. And the worst part was that she had to investigate and condemn another student to death. And after reading the note from Teruteru’s mother, it would break her heart to condemn this boy, of all people… To watch him grizzly executed like Hiyoko had been… Just… why? Why was Monokuma doing this? Why them? What had any of these kids ever done?

“If it’s any consolation, Sensei, I don’t think it was Hanamura-kun.” Sonia offered a beaming, apologetic smile to the older woman, hands clasped politely in front of her waist. They were currently in the Novoselic Embassy so that Sonia could retrieve her phone, and the chef had conveniently had that note on him so he hadn’t needed to retrieve it for Chisa to read.

Chisa honestly wished she could be as confident as the princess seemed to be. Still, she offered a reassuring grin to try and relieve the tension.

“Really? What makes you so sure?” She was honestly curious of Sonia’s thoughts; the girl had had it rough for a Class Rep, and she partly blamed herself for brushing her aside so often, lately. When the incident with Pekoyama attacking Hinata had occurred, Chisa eased into the old routine of letting Togami have sway and take charge, or at least have ‘authority’ again, helping watch over Fuyuhiko.

Sonia took it in stride from what Chisa observed, still offered her support to the housekeeper and Byakuya, but that didn’t make it fair or right when the princess had been fairly elected as Rep.

“Hanamura-kun had motive and opportunity, but I believe this murder takes Kuzuryu-kun’s motive and turns it into a focus.” The blonde calmly rationalized, tilting her head slightly and giving a closed-eyed beam. “Hanamura-kun didn’t know the first thing about the people involved in Kuzuryu-kun’s past with his sister. It’d be strange if he randomly targeted Mioda and it conveniently made Kuzuryu-kun into a scapegoat.”

Chisa’s frown deepened as she considered that. True. The incident that got Hajime hurt had become public knowledge, Mahiru’s confrontation had been made known, but what wasn’t publicly known was Mikan and Ibuki and how they were brought up in Fuyuhiko’s motive. That… made things a lot more complicated. Only certain people would have been able to frame Fuyuhiko for this murder; and in the very worst case scenario, Fuyuhiko or Peko did take the plunge and finish what they started.

“I… I suppose you’re right.” Chisa took a deep, steadying breath. She then offered a small, fractured smile and nodded at the blonde gratefully. Teruteru, meanwhile, relaxed a little and started combing his hair to try and regain his composure.“… Thanks, Nevermind. I think I needed to hear someone else say it.”

Sonia nodded primly in return.

“It is no problem! I… I do not want to think any of us murdered Mioda, either…” Sonia stared down at the polished floor miserably. “But Pekoyama-san’s actions did create an opening. And Mioda died because of it. I’m… I’m so sorry. I… If I had just done **more** … If I had just stepped up like Togami-kun… Oh, but I am just a figurehead… So useless…”

Chisa took Sonia’s hands consolingly into her own and patted them.

“Sweetie, don’t go blaming yourself! There’s more than enough of that going around. No matter what happens, I’m proud you were elected as the Class Rep! I’m sure Mioda was glad to have a friend like you, too. We all worked on those invitations together, but it’s a bummer they went to waste because Mioda bumped up the day of her concert… I’ll bet she was up all night, doing up those new invites!”

Sonia blinked in surprise, before nodding gratefully at the orange-haired woman.

“Y-You are right… It really was sudden, but I’m sure she just wanted Hinata-kun awake again, as soon as possible!” Sonia squeezed Chisa’s hands back in gratitude for the pep talk.

Chisa beamed and nodded in agreement.

“Yep, yep! I’ll bet that’s exactly what it was. Mioda sure had a soft spot for him, huh?”

Sonia adopted a far-off look in her eyes.

“… She… She did, and I understand how she felt, completely… Mioda had Hinata-kun, and Togami-kun, and I have two special boys of my own… I-I don’t want anything to happen to them.” The blonde shrank in on herself, looking very vulnerable. Chisa frowned in concern and patted the princess’s hands again in comfort.

Teruteru took that moment to step into the conversation again.

“Two special boys, huh? Tell me what kind of foreplay you guys like to do~?” The chef purred before laughing nervously at the reproving glare he got from the teacher. “I-I mean…! That wasn’t a perverted question or anything, I-I was just curious how often you went at it, and what positions you like… Um… Ehehe… Ah! What I **really** wanted to ask was, how deep was that friendship you had with Mioda-chan, Nevermind-chan? Was it… intimate~?”

Chisa deadpanned at the chef’s shameful behavior, but Sonia didn’t seem to register the nature of the perverted boy’s questions.

“Mioda… She… Even though she had voted for Togami-kun, Mioda did treat me as the Class Rep, all the same… And we had great fun, talking about girl stuff, boys, planning parties… She opened up to me about her plans for a concert, and I was hella ready for it! But… But then this happened…”

Chisa patted and squeezed the princess’s shoulder comfortingly, smiling as supportively as she could as Teruteru calmed down at the serious response.

“We’ll throw a party again sometime. Maybe after things cool down, or maybe even after we escape this island… Sound good?”

Sonia nodded sadly.

“I… I would like that… very much…”

~*~

Kazuichi grumbled slightly as he plucked Ibuki’s phone off the table and waved it in the air irritably.

“I don’t get this at all! Mioda’s phone is all that’s here! Why’d we even have to investigate this place?!” He turned on the phone and scrolled through the call history. “Damn, she didn’t even use this thing! What the hell?!”

Gundham, who had picked Ibuki’s notepad from off the floor, frowned as he glanced on the page the musician had last been writing on.

“Do not be impatient, Souda… There are secrets to be learned here, and **I** , the Overlord of Ice, shall pierce the veil with my All-Seeing Eye!” Even as the breeder said that with his usual energy, he was frowning. There was a line erratically drawn across the latest page of the notepad, as if Ibuki was in the middle of writing and then got distracted. Prior to that peculiar detail, it was clear Ibuki had been writing up details for her concert. Seeing nothing of particular intrigue, Gundham huffed and pocketed the notepad, deeming it a clue worth keeping all the same. “Now then… What have we here…?”

Kazuichi blinked owlishly as he watched the breeder stride over to the wall nearest the table. A piece of paper was affixed to the wall by a piece of tape – the paper was rather large. The dark-clothed teen unceremoniously plucked the paper off, and he and Kazuichi stared at the single word engraved on the wall, baffled by it.

“’Justice’?” The mechanic scratched his head, perplexed. “The hell?”

Gundham crossed his arms and buried the lower half of his face in his scarf, thinking deeply on the word.

“That… is a powerful word. A nice line, really. But no… It is not an incantation that **I** particularly dabble in, during my hellish rituals. We must look elsewhere, because I’m certain that neither you nor I had anything to do with this curse placed on Mioda’s studio!”

Kazuichi groaned at the bizarre and nonsensical phrasing.

“Ughhh! I wasn’t blaming you, dude! I meant what the hell does it mean?!” He shook a fist in annoyance.

“How would I know that?” Gundham arched an eyebrow inquisitively. “There are many demons in this world that I do not yet know… many foul curses lost to the sands of time. I could not even guess as to the curse’s ‘meaning’, beyond the modern definition.”

Kazuichi’s shoulders sagged.

“That’s… That’s not… Ugh! I’m blaming Kuzuryu on this one! I bet he did this crap!”

Gundham tensed up at the accusation and turned his full attention on the mechanic.

“What do you mean? Explain yourself, disciple.”

Kazuichi grumbled, massaging his forehead irritably.

“Well, the guy had it out for Koizumi, didn’t he? Something about his dead sister… or-or so I heard.” The pink-haired teen chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head. “A-Anyway, Koizumi was friends with Mioda, right? S-So… maybe he killed Mioda to get back at Koizumi for whatever she did!”

Gundham stared back at the mechanic, dumbfounded by the theory. He was absolutely floored.

“That… That might very well explain the universe!” The breeder exclaimed, vibrating with eager energy. He rushed up to Kazuichi and shook him by the shoulders, slightly shaking him. “Kazuichi Souda, your brilliance astounds me! It is all due to my influence, of course, you mustn’t steal any credit… However, how did Mioda’s body wind up in the library? Indeed, that infidel was missing for half an hour, but would he have managed to move the body there and set the stage for the bloody spectacle we bore witness to?! And if he did, and still found time to move to the beach house, how did he come to set the library ablaze the next day?!”

Kazuichi removed himself from the breeder’s hold and scratched his head.

“W-Well… I don’t have all the answers, dude! I was lookin’ for the missing gas and scooter, remember?! Thanks for ditchin’ me by the way!” He grouchily replied. “You didn’t meet up where we were supposed to meet up!”

Gundham blinked slowly before recalling the day’s events.

“That was… I encountered the Dark Queen just as she finished her swim. And she reminded me that we had forgotten all about Mioda’s concert. I-I assumed you would be there, and that you had ditched me.” He tugged his scarf up his face in embarrassment.

“Like hell I’d ditch you! We’re supposedta be brothers!” Kazuichi shook his fist again in frustration before slumping his shoulders in defeat. “… Oh, who am I kidding. I would’ve told ya to go with Sonia-san, too. You shouldn’t have wasted your time with me to begin with.”

Gundham crossed his arms and scowled reprovingly.

“What nonsense is this you babble? Had I known you were still out there searching, the Dark Queen and I would have rushed to your aid! Did you ever find those items of interest?”

Kazuichi stiffened before shaking his head.

“N-Nope! Didn’t find anything… I just kept lookin’, and then the Monokuma Announcement went off! More importantly, uh… I-I think the gas was used for the fire in the library. Explains why we never found that stuff.” The pink-headed boy muttered.

Gundham’s scowl deepened.

“That… might be very well true… Yet that leaves the scooter unaccounted for.”

“Guess so.” Kazuichi chuckled weakly before squeezing his eyes shut anxiously. “Aw, fuck… What am I gonna do, dude? The fire and murder happened using fuel from my shop! On top of me lookin’ for the stuff before the body was discovered, that just makes me look so damn suspicious! I’m so screwed…”

The mechanic tensed as he felt a firm hand rest on his shoulder, and he looked up in astonishment. The breeder’s gaze was resolute, unwavering.

“Souda. Know that the Dark Queen and I will stand by you, regardless of this ‘suspicion’ planted upon your personage! I do not believe for one second that you killed Mioda. And it was not your fault that the killer used fuel from the service shop! The killer is truly a foul demon from the deepest pits of Hell, to even think of framing **my** disciple for this senseless slaughter!”

Kazuichi gave a wobbly grin before reluctantly nodding and bowing his head.

“… Th-Thanks, man… I think. Whatever happens, I-I’ll make it up to you guys… None of us killed Mioda! I know it was Kuzuryu! Somehow…”

Gundham nodded sagely, removing his hand from the mechanic’s shoulder but not before patting it consolingly. His eyes then roved along the ground, noticing something else of interest.

“It does appear… something was wiped away here. Perhaps a bloody spectacle **did** take place in this room…!”

Kazuichi’s eyes roamed from the word ‘Justice’ engraved on the wall, to the evidently wiped up spot on the floor.

Yeah… Something totally happened in this room… But what?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, it's a little later than I normally get out, but this investigation WAS kicking my butt.... And I didn't get to everyone juuust yet. lol Prepare for another minor infodump next week, but we start the trial, too. There's a LITTLE more info needed to preface the trial, but then we will get to it in earnest~ We've hit many of the main highlights that I want you guys to have for your theories and investigations, it's really more of a polishing next week by including the other characters you didn't see yet during the investigation. I'm sure you all wanna see where everyone's heads are at. :3 
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "In other news... Hajime is slowly awakening his god powers.
> 
> ... yay?
> 
> Somehow I feel this will be a bad thing..." - DaDecapitron
> 
> A lot of you guys picked up on Hajime-chan's superpowers emerging a little. That's good. I wanted it to be clear that's what it was~ Now, what that leads to, I'll leave to all of your imagination. Just know, Hajime-chan isn't the only one being, ah... "worked on" in terms of.... well.... ;;;;>___> I'm afraid I can't say just yet. Just know that GOOD THINGS lay in our future, very fun.... violent.... chaotic.... pinch of yandere.... glorious.... things. And not all of them isolated to one character, because that'd be boring. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	20. Chapter 2, Part 8: The Writing's on the Wall

Fuyuhiko gritted his teeth and furiously paced around the small room, no real destination in mind. He just needed to… move. Synapses were firing in his head as a myriad of thoughts bombarded him in rapid succession, and just wouldn’t leave him alone. Nekomaru watched from where he was sitting, arms crossed over his chest and brow creased in concern.

“C’mon, Kuzuryu! It’s not gonna do ya any good, wasting movement like that! Just sit down and wait.” The manager rumbled, eyes softening even as the yakuza glared hotly at him.

“Shut the hell up! You don’t know shit! I **need** to be out there, but you assholes just won’t let this go!” The blond’s hands flew over his chest and twitched in outrage, and he seethed as his glare intensified. “You think Peko did it? Huh?! You really think she’d pull shit like this after knocking out Hinata?! Peko’s a hitwoman, but she’s not a moron! At least let **her** go!”

Nekomaru closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“You know we can’t do that…It’s for your guys’ safety, too.”

Fuyuhiko scoffed loudly.

“ **This** bullshit again! **I don’t need saving**!” The yakuza screamed, spittle flying from his mouth. He clenched his fists so hard that Nekomaru could hear it. “Listen. I can **guarantee you** Peko couldn’t have murdered that chick… You want proof?! Just think of this fucking jail setup you assholes have going on! Did Peko sneak out at any point?! No? Then **let her go**!”

Nekomaru held up a hand to stop the yakuza from further flying off the handle, eyes remaining closed.

“Calm down, Kuzuryu! No one’s accusing you guys – not me, not Togami, not Yukizome-sensei…”

“Oh, so it’s just everybody else then!” Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes, dropping his clenched fists to his sides. The storm brewing behind his glare exploded at the team manager. “Do what you want with me, but Peko **couldn’t have done it**! Mioda died this morning, Togami said it himself! I don’t care who the hell suspects her, they’re dumbasses! Peko doesn’t need protecting, she can handle herself just fine. You want me to fucking calm down? **Let her out**!”

Nekomaru took another deep, patient breath as he cracked his eyes open and calmly stared back at the yakuza.

“Kid, the more you struggle, the harder it is to just… take you at your word. Look, whether you or Pekoyama killed Mioda, the important thing is you guys seem to know stuff we don’t. And until we know what that stuff is, we have to keep you away from the investigation! We can’t let you run around when everyone’s lives are at stake. Believe me, I would call Ikusaba right now. I want to make that call just as much as you do, because I’ve seen the person Pekoyama can be. But until you and Pekoyama open up about what you know… we can’t do that.”

Fuyuhiko snarled in dissatisfaction before sharply turning his back on the manager and storming over to the bed before kicking the bedframe lividly. For a few moments, Nekomaru thought the yakuza would resume pacing, but instead he flopped on the bed and moodily stared up at the ceiling, arms resting behind his bed.

Nekomaru ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He figured it was worth a shot, confronting the immediate problem directly, but it seemed like whatever was under wraps, Fuyuhiko wasn’t gonna talk. Not willingly.

… This was gonna be a long investigation, from their end.

~*~

Peko anxiously clutched her elbow as she crossed her arms, sitting on her bed and staring down at the floor, lost in thought. The seconds ticking by felt like hours for her.

Mukuro bit her lower lip and dropped down from the second floor of Peko’s cabin, having wrapped up an investigation report from Sensei. The soldier uncertainly approached Peko, not really knowing how to proceed from here.

“It’s… proceeding.” Mukuro mumbled, her gaze drifting down to the floor, too. She fidgeted when Peko didn’t say anything; as a soldier, she was used to waiting. Silence didn’t make her nervous, either. But something within her begged to strike up a conversation, so… “Are you… alright?”

Peko didn’t look up. Neither did Mukuro.

… This was awkward.

“How is he?” Peko whispered. Anyone else would’ve thought they hallucinated hearing it, but Mukuro’s ears were trained to pick up a voice that small and… broken.

Mukuro looked up at the silver-haired girl this time, and opened and closed her mouth in attempts to speak. Her training harshly reminded her she wasn’t supposed to say anything about the investigation, even if it was about Kuzuryu. Sensei said they had to keep Pekoyama and Kuzuryu isolated because of information they refused to share. The… other part of her… whatever that was… She knew it’d be unfair to withhold that particular information from Peko.

“… He’s upset.” Mukuro mumbled, one hand twitching into a small fist as she stared down at it. She focused on it as she tried thinking of what else she could say, but she was coming up blank. For once, Mukuro cursed how her training had been a little too thorough, stripping away the civilian side of her… Her humanity, in some ways.

Well, if Mukuro was honest, even if she did possess some skill for these kinds of difficult conversations, and she didn’t, this awkward feeling wouldn’t go away. After all, Pekoyama had still tried to kill Hinata-kun… And Mukuro was still furious about that.

… But she’d be lying if yesterday hadn’t changed anything between them, after the interrogations. Mukuro could see the faint outlines of… familiarity in the swordswoman’s life and situation. Pekoyama devoted her mind, soul, and body to Kuzuryu and his clan. And while Mukuro herself was grappling with who **was** important to her, at least on this island, she knew that she would have done everything for Komaeda-kun, back in the first trial, if he had been the killer. Mukuro knew all about devoting oneself to a people, a cause. Even now, her loyalty in Fenrir was ironclad.

And that’s another way that made this exchange so uncomfortable… It was all well and good to let Pekoyama run off when it seemed like Kuzuryu might do something he might regret, but that had **not** been the case. That note from Kuzuryu that was slipped under Pekoyama’s door that morning, a note declaring his resolve to finish what he’d started, it’d been some kind of setup. Perhaps Kuzuryu and Pekoyama staged this together so that Pekoyama would have the time to kill Mioda, no matter how short that was.

_‘1-3 minutes.’_ Mukuro thought to herself, narrowing her gaze at the floor. If it was all set up beforehand, all Pekoyama would have had to do was set the library ablaze. Easy enough to do with a flamethrower guitar. Peko **had** a few minutes, even while on the phone with them.

The problem became when and how Kuzuryu set up the library. The only time he was loose was last night, and that had been… for half an hour… Half an hour. More than enough time if he was careful to avoid the people looking for him. That left the matter of Ibuki, of course, because those invitations were delivered this morning… But if that was cleared up in any way, like someone else delivered them for Ibuki, unknowing of what happened to her…

The knot in Mukuro’s stomach felt like it became a baseball, the more she thought on this and the doubts settled in. Could… Could Kuzuryu and Pekoyama have done this? She knew they had the cohesion to do so. But… Peko **had** seemed distressed about the note, and that was why Mukuro had ultimately let her run off, because she knew how that would have pained the swordswoman to lose the person most important to her…

“I assumed he would be…” Peko murmured, clenching her eyes shut and gritted her teeth in anguish. Mukuro’s eyes snapped to the silver-haired girl and watched her very closely. “F… Fuyuhiko has… always been like this. Please, be patient with him. The events of both yesterday and today… Anyone would be frustrated and stressed over this ordeal. He is only venting.”

“… Venting.” Mukuro deadpanned. She tried to rein her emotions in, but she couldn’t fight the suspicion creeping into her voice. “Pekoyama, I’m going to need a little more than just ‘be patient’. I let you run off even though Kuzuryu was really at the **beach** …”

Peko’s eyes became panicked and she straightened up rigidly on the bed.

“I… I know what it looks like, Ikusaba, but that was not staged. Fuyuhiko and I… We…” The swordswoman fumbled with her words, and she stared pleadingly at the soldier. “Ikusaba, you saw the note just like I did!”

“You **hung up** …” Mukuro hissed, eyes narrowing.

“I didn’t have a choice!” Peko’s voice became strained and she bowed her head again in shame. “Ikusaba… Please… You’re possibly the only one on this island that can understand.”

Mukuro shook with barely contained rage and hissed again.

“It’s **because** I understand that I’m suspicious! **You’re** the one that needs to understand I can’t trust anyone right now except Hinata-kun! For his sake, I **have** to consider all possibilities! And your devotion to Kuzuryu makes this murder very possible.”

Peko’s pupils dilated as she whipped her head up in alarm.

“Fuyuhiko couldn’t have done it! He’s been under lock and key, just like me!”

“He had thirty minutes,” Mukuro snapped back harshly, and that shut the swordswoman right up. A silence overtook them, and for a while it seemed like there was nothing else to say…

And then Pekoyama’s phone rang. Mukuro stared down the swordswoman critically for several moments before answering it.

“... Togami?” The soldier murmured once she registered the caller. She went quiet as she listened to what the heir had to say. “… You want to…? Why?”

Peko watched the soldier wrinkle her nose slightly, but acquiesced after a few more words from the heir. She blinked at the phone as it was offered to her.

“He needs to talk to you.” Mukuro flatly explained when Peko didn’t immediately respond. The soldier and swordswoman exchanged one last stare-off before Peko acquiesced and accepted the phone, holding it up to her ear.

The silver-haired girl became further puzzled when the soldier briskly walked over to the front door and stepped out, shutting it behind her. That was when Peko knew this conversation… probably wouldn’t be any more comfortable.

“Pekoyama, what did you find at the crime scene that made you hang up?” Was the first question out of the heir’s mouth.

… Not any more comfortable at all.

~*~

Mikan fidgeted as she stared down at Ibuki’s body listlessly. She’d done about everything she could. She hadn’t been able to glean much, but who could blame her? The body had been so severely burned! Even Ikusaba would have had a hard time examining this one.

The nurse’s eyes glazed over. Useless. She was useless, useless, **useless** … Was it any wonder Hinata-kun ran around the crime scene with Koizumi? Having so much and enjoying each other’s **company** without her around… They ‘trusted’ her to give an autopsy, but she couldn’t **do** that with the body in this state…! Not one that they’d be satisfied with!

Mikan anxiously tugged at strands of her hair and nervously bounced back and forth on her feet.

_‘Useless, useless, useless, useless, useless, **useless, useless, useless, USELESS**!’ _The nurse yanked at her hair more forcefully with each repetition.

Why would they care about she had to say? Mahiru had **pictures** , so they’d be able to see the crime scene even during the trial! Not to mention the photographer was pretty smart, debating theories and making observations with Hinata-kun… They really did fit so well together… Maybe they’d fit together so well **that way** , too… There was no room for a stupid, annoying, **useless** girl like h…

“Tsumiki?”

“Eek!” Mikan screeched impulsively, whirling on the wincing brunet that had approached her as carefully as he could. When she was done, Hajime rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, yet his eyes reflected genuine concern.

“A-Are you okay?” The brunet asked, frowning worriedly.

Mikan shrank in on herself in shame. She hadn’t meant to overreact like that, and she didn’t want to worry Hinata-kun pointlessly… Not over a worthless girl like her…

“I-I’m fine…” Mikan mumbled, gaze falling to the floor automatically. Her fingers nervously twitched as they fiddled with the hem of her apron.

Hajime stared at the purple-haired girl for a long time before looking down at Ibuki’s body, frown deepening.

“I’m sorry about that… I didn’t mean to make you feel lonely.”

Mikan snapped her head up to look at the brunet in shock. There was a muted terror to her countenance, as she hadn’t meant to advertise her insecurities. Hajime didn’t need to worry about her, not about a person as trivial as her.

But Hajime kept talking, even as Mikan tried to put those thoughts and feelings into words.

“I just wanted to give you the space you needed to do your autopsy, or at least what you could.” He explained, again rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “I know that probably sounds dumb, but I don’t know anything about medicine or biology, and I didn’t want to get in your way. You’re the expert, so… I dunno, just tell me if you need anything, even if it’s just checking in more often. I promised I’d be there for you, and I meant it. We’re in this together.”

Mikan’s mouth felt dry as she watched the brunet and drank in his kindness… It took every ounce of willpower to not just… glomp him. So, she settled for giving a small, shaky smile and poking her fingers together anxiously.

“Th-Thank you…” The nurse sniffled before slowly shaking her head. “I-I couldn’t find much, though… Everyone else is going to have so much more to share, b-but not me… I really am useless…”

She bit down on her lower lip; she hadn’t meant to let that slip, but it seemed Hajime’s calm, patient, **warm** presence loosened her tongue a little too well. She shrank further in on herself when Hajime’s look became a little intense… like something about what she said displeased him…

“Tsumiki… You’re not useless.” The brunet reassured her firmly, restraining himself from reaching out to her shoulders and making her feel more uncomfortable. “It’s like Togami said, y’know? Every little bit is going to help us. Anything you can tell us about Ibuki is going to be immensely useful; don’t forget, you can find things that none of us can! Plus, you’re our friend! That automatically makes you important and relevant.”

Mikan shivered at how earnest and… and **kind** he was… If it wouldn’t possibly drive him away, she’d definitely beg to hear that all day… To hear anything remotely friendly and welcoming, that is.

… But she was all too aware that’d ask for too much. So she nervously bobbed her head up and down and tried to hold back the tears. Anything to reassure him, and not make him worry any more than he was already was.

“W-Well… I-I’m still not sure when Ibuki died…” Mikan mumbled, dipping her head again and biting her lower lip. “B-But I did find something the Monokuma File never mentioned… The back of her head showed signs of being struck… I-It was one blow, b-but it was… hard. I-I think the fire burned away the blood, but the wound m-must have been bleeding…”

Hajime winced at that piece of information. So, Ibuki had been struck like he had… But what did that mean? The File said there had been no other injuries related to the murder itself; so this must have been beforehand…

“So she was struck, but… Is that how the killer captured her, maybe? Attacked her from behind?” He rubbed his chin as his brow furrowed. Mikan shrugged helplessly.

“Th-That wasn’t the only thing… Though, th-this one’s… m-minor… I-I found a couple small scratch marks on the front of her body, a little on the left side just above her stomach, a-and they might’ve left small b-burns, too… I-It’s hard to say with the body like th-this…”

Hajime’s brow furrowed more deeply.

“Small scratch marks that could leave burns…? What could’ve left those?” He muttered.

“W-Well, sometimes if stun guns have prongs, they can leave marks like that…” Mikan helpfully explained. “I-I think the supermarket had security equipment… M-Maybe that’s where the killer got it from?”

Hajime nodded slowly as he processed that.

“Yeah… I’m pretty sure Togami had some of that stuff, back when we threw the party in the lodge.” But with it accessible at the supermarket, just about anyone could have gotten their hands on a taser…

And now they had two ways Ibuki could have been incapacitated. A taser, and a blow to the back of her head. Both methods were definitely used on her, and he knew that one question they would have to answer sooner or later is why she was seemingly attacked twice.

He smiled thinly, and nodded gratefully at the nurse.

“I did have one other question, though – it’s really kinda minor.” The brunet explained as he looked down at the corpse. “What happened to that pink handkerchief Ibuki used to wear? Was it… burned up in the fire?”

He couldn’t help noticing how that small piece of garment was missing from the body; it made her seem slightly different without it. Then again… her body shouldn’t have been torched so violently, either.

“I-I don’t know… I-I didn’t see it when examining her body.” Mikan mumbled, gazing down at the body as well, wishing she had an answer for the boy.

This kind, caring boy…

“That’s okay, I just wondered if you moved it to get a better look at Ibuki.” Hajime replied, smiling as reassuringly as he could at her. And he felt happy when he could make the nurse smile in return, even if she still seemed quite shaken.

… They still had lots and lots of questions to get through, apparently. This whole crime scene seemed way over-the-top, but the fact they weren’t sure when Ibuki died, where she died, or even what incapacitated her or where a piece of her clothes went… He sure hoped the others were discovering stuff, because he sure had a mountain of questions from just going over this place with a fine-toothed comb…

At least Mahiru had the crime scene all preserved in photos. They’d need those photos, he knew they would… And Mikan’s findings would definitely help, too.

~*~

“Chiaki! Wh-What happened?!”

The gamer turned to see Monomi, looking panicked with raised arms. She frowned softly, gaze flitting around the musician’s cottage.

“Ibuki was killed… Monokuma’s having us investigate, like he did last time.” Chiaki mumbled, not seeing anything out of the ordinary in the room.

… Which was weird, because the door to Ibuki’s cottage was already unlocked – she didn’t need to ask for Monokuma to unlock it. The fact it was unlocked and nothing seemed to be missing, that meant…

That meant the intent wasn’t to steal. And there wasn’t a struggle in here. One might think Ibuki just left it unlocked, she seemed the type to be scatterbrained, but Chiaki had called Hajime, and he confirmed the key to Ibuki’s cottage wasn’t on her body. That meant someone else had it… and they had access to this cottage.

Someone had access to Ibuki’s cottage and they’d left it unlocked… Why? What did they do in here?

“Oh no… Not again…” Monomi deflated, anxiously poking her paws together. “How could another murder happen?! I thought… Hajime-kun didn’t die, so they wouldn’t want to repeat that mistake! Oh, Chiaki… What are we going to do? That’s three dead, now!”

Chiaki pulled her hood over her head and hummed uncertainly.

“All we can do is find the truth… If we don’t, everyone but Ibuki’s killer will die. Until dad can find a way to recover the dead, we have to keep them alive. That’s… all we can do.”

“B-But that means a fourth person will die…!” Monomi moaned, paws flying to her cheeks in dismay. Chiaki nodded sadly.

“I know… and that’s not all. Hajime is… that blow to his head wasn’t good. He’s drawing on some of his… talents, now.”

Monomi gasped.

“H-His talents?! D-Does that mean he remembers…?” The bunny quivered fearfully. Chiaki shook her head.

“No. It’s not that bad… Not yet. But I think… I think if he keeps drawing on them, we might not be able to predict what will happen. Hajime is still here, so there’s hope we can stop him from reverting. We just… have to keep him grounded. We can’t let him get overwhelmed. Thankfully, Sensei, Byakuya, Mahiru, Mikan, Nagito, and I aren’t gonna let that happen. It’s just… this trial is gonna be rough for him. Ibuki was special; there’s no way he’ll come out unscathed.”

Monomi moaned as she yanked her drooping ears.

“Oh, Chiaki… He means a lot to you, doesn’t he? I’m so sorry…” The rabbit knew if she had a human heart like her students, it’d be breaking right now, listening to the gamer talk.

Chiaki blinked slowly, oddly feeling a lot of emotions churning within her.

“Hajime… Hajime is…” She surprised herself when she took a deep, shuddering breath before nodding reluctantly. “I think… The Neo World Program worked a little too perfectly. I’m not what I was supposed to be. I… I’m not really sure what would happen, if I lost Hajime. I don’t think my heart could take that.”

Monomi tilted her head curiously.

“Do you think it’s all the memories? Hajime and the Chiaki of the past, they seemed really close… It’s so tragic what happened to her!”

“Hajime cried when he watched Chiaki die… He remembered, even after the Steering Committee stole away everything that was his.” The gamer mumbled, hood still drawn over her head miserably. “I… I think I might be similar. I’m… not just a program. It really feels like I’m… It’s like Chiaki still lives through me, and she’s trying to help Hajime get a second chance. Because she never got one.”

“… Do you need some time to sort out your feelings?” Monomi gently asked, to which Chiaki faintly nodded. “Okay… Just know I’m here for you. Your dad is, too.”

With that, Monomi left. Chiaki stared down at the floor… but soon felt a slight dampness on her face. She lifted one hand to her cheek and found a few tears coming out.

Chiaki took a shuddering breath and closed her eyes, allowing the tears to silently flow.

~*~

The time came, as they all knew it would. They were all called over to Monokuma Rock, as they had been for the first trial. Hajime, Mahiru, Mikan, Nekomaru, Fuyuhiko, Mukuro, Peko, Chiaki, Sonia, Gundham, Teruteru, Byakuya, and Nagito all trickled their way there. The only stragglers this time seemed to be Kazuichi and Chisa.

“Bastards! It’s not like I needed to be held by the hand or some shit!” Fuyuhiko huffed, crossing his arms and looking off to the side. “There’s nowhere for me to run, right? I have to accept the ending no matter what, right? Still… I’m a yakuza! Accepting defeat is not an option!”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes at his fellow blond in disapproval.

“Being obstinate won’t lead to the result you’re thinking of, Kuzuryu. Just cooperate, and it will be over much sooner.”

Fuyuhiko snarled, balling his hand into a fist challengingly.

“Oh yeah?! And just what the fuck do you think you know?!”

Byakuya’s gaze drifted over to Peko, who remained silent, eyes closed solemnly.

“Much more than you think. You and Pekoyama seem to be under a very serious misunderstanding, and I **will** clear that up. If I don’t, your stubbornness may kill us all.”

Gundham raised an eyebrow inquisitively as the yakuza scoffed and refused further comment.

“What misunderstanding do you speak of? Is it not obvious who Mioda’s cold-hearted killer is?”

“It seems… possible they did this.” Mukuro’s gaze swept to Peko, who still refused to say anything.

Teruteru rocked back and forth, poking his fingers together.

“I-I didn’t do it, so it must’ve been them! Yeah! Just pick Kuzuryu or Pekoyama, and let’s be done with it! I… I wanna go home…”

Nekomaru breathed a heavy sigh, closing his eyes patiently.

“Sayin’ shit like that just makes us suspicious, y’know… Let’s take it slow and come at this with a game plan. We can’t rush in when our lives are at stake!”

Mahiru frowned and looked off to the side, gripping the strap to her camera bag.

“We can debate it all we like, but… The ones who had the most motive are still Kuzuryu and Pekoyama. I just don’t if it I can stomach someone else being the culprit that burned Mioda alive!”

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Considering everything we found… I really wanna hear what everybody else has to say. There’s way too many questions to just pick a culprit right off the bat… And if I’m honest, I think it’s rarely the people we jump to first that turn out to be the culprit; remember the last trial.”

Mahiru blinked in astonishment, and more than a few of them stared at the brunet in intrigue. Out of all of them, they suspected Hajime might be the most suspicious of the swordswoman and yakuza… Clearly, he was in the ‘wait and see’ camp. Byakuya seemed proud of that stance, while Nagito seemed the most curious; Fuyuhiko, Peko, and Mukuro just stared at the brunet in stunned disbelief.

Sonia tapped her chin, humming thoughtfully.

“I believe Hinata-kun is right… We mustn’t jump to conclusions. Everyone knew what Kuzuryu and Pekoyama tried to do; it would not be hard to pin this crime on them. We mustn’t forget, everyone received a motive. Everyone… has a stake in this.”

Nagito waved a hand casually and chuckled lightly.

“Everyone except Hinata-kun, who Pekoyama knocked out! Really, that makes 14 possible killers. Those aren’t bad odds at all. Better than 17, wouldn’t you say?”

Fuyuhiko deadpanned at the luckster.

“You don’t get out a lot, do you, shithead? This is all a fucking game to you still, isn’t it?!”

Nagito shrugged nonchalantly, crossing his arms and grinning mysteriously.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m not siding with the killer at all, this time. As to where my allegiances fall, well… I’ll leave that to your imagination. If you’re innocent, you’re in luck. If not… My condolences. I can’t properly gauge a Hope that acted prematurely.” The luckster spread out his arms and gave a raspy laugh. “You’ll make an excellent stepping stone, though! We’ll make sure your death is used to the utmost in launching our remaining Hopes to greater heights~!”

Everyone assembled just stared warily at the luckster. Fuyuhiko grumbled under his breath and snapped his head away again in frustration.

“Locked **Peko** up, but you let this fucker run free… Yeah, that’s real fair.”

Hajime sweatdropped and scratched his cheek sheepishly.

_‘Komaeda… We still need to work on you.’_

Mahiru groaned, looking around.

“Ugh… What is taking so long?! Where did Souda get off to, and why isn’t he here yet?”

Monokuma took that moment to appear, still wearing his obnoxious pirate hat.

“Don’t look at me! Your Super Nanny must still be out there, trying to complete her Pokedex~! Too bad she forgot! Going to capture a legendary with just Pokeballs is like the hardest challenge of all. Especiallyyy if you haven’t saved your game in a few hours and your console runs outta juice…”

Everyone deadpanned at the bear’s usual nonsensical rambling. Chiaki, however, tapped her chin and hummed.

“That… would really be bad luck. Never forget to save often.”

Monokuma giggled like a school girl.

“Right?! Right?! I knew one of ya brats would get me!” Monokuma sighed contentedly, patting his belly.

And just when someone else was going to ask why Monokuma hadn’t gone out himself to wrangle the stragglers up, Yukizome-sensei came running, dragging Kazuichi along by his jumper. The mechanic was pulling his beanie over his eyes and moaning about stretching the fabric.

“Sorry, sorry~! I couldn’t leave anyone behind!” Chisa chirped, patting Kazuichi’s shoulder heartily as they came to a halt.

“Damnittttt…” Kazuichi moaned, rocking back and forth a little.

Hajime blinked owlishly.

“Uhhh… What was Souda doing?”

“He was probably trying to run away again.” Mahiru sighed, rolling her eyes.

Chisa opened her mouth to explain when it didn’t look like Kazuichi would speak up for himself, but Monokuma beat her to the punch.

“Well… it’s all good. If the trial heats up, it’s all good. Anyway, looks like everyone’s here, so let us depart now! I’ll go first and be one step ahead of you guys!” The bear rubbed the back of his head bashfully before taking off.

Kazuichi massaged his head in annoyance.

“C-Crap… I’m not mentally prepared yet…”

“If you don’t have enough power, harness your latent energy! C’mon, bring out that energyyyyyyyyy~!” Nekomaru bellowed, pointing towards the mechanic passionately.

Gundham crossed his arms and closed his eyes solemnly.

“So it begins… the beginning of the end…”

Nagito laughed heartily.

“Now then, let’s keep our spirits high! So we can one day find that shining Hope!”

Hajime clenched a fist and bowed his head.

_‘Ibuki… You never wanted it to end like this. All you wanted was to have a good time… I couldn’t save you. And I can’t save your killer. But I can protect everyone else, so that’s why… I’ll move forward. Just like you wanted me to. Just like you **taught** me to do…’_

Soon enough, the escalator emerged, and they all boarded it to ride the elevator down into the trial room. There was a little more space this time with only 15 of them in the elevator, yet it was pretty much the same as last time. After a tense period of silence that seemed to stretch on forever, the elevator grinded to a halt, and they all poured out into the new trial ground.

… This one seemed to have a ship and oceanic theme – a series of wooden ships surrounded the witness stands and Monokuma’s throne, and all the ships had sails. Also, joining Akane’s portrait, now portraits Hiyoko and Ibuki joined her. Hiyoko’s portrait had a childish X marked over it, while Ibuki’s was a pair of musical notes crossing each other.

“Aim! Defeat the boring routine!” Monokuma called out once they entered. He patted his belly contentedly, sitting on his throne and still wearing the pirate hat. “Sooo, I’ve decided to start redecorating. How’s it look? Monokuma-sama’s redecoration is awesome, isn’t it? It’s not like I’ll allow you to think otherwise, anyway!”

Sonia poked her fingers together nervously.

“To go to the trouble of doing something this elaborate… Really… What is your true intention?”

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Nothing really… Essentially, this Killing Game is just to kill time anyway.”

“To kill time?! Are you fucking serious?!” Fuyuhiko roared, hands twitching in aggravation.

Monokuma just belted out a laugh.

“To break away from my purpose! That alone is my purpose! A purpose is only gonna be a weakness! Those who have a purpose are always the weakest ones in the bunch! That’s why you guys should forget about such cheap-ass purposes like ‘trying to survive’… And enjoy the Class Trial from the bottom of your heaaaaaaartssssssss~!”

Everyone was arrayed in the same positions as before. From Hajime’s right all the way back to his left, Mahiru, Kazuichi, Peko, Chisa, Teruteru, Sonia, Nekomaru, Chiaki, Byakuya, Mikan, Nagito, Ibuki’s portrait, Fuyuhiko, Mukuro, Akane’s portrait, Gundham, and Hiyoko’s portrait. Hiyoko and Akane’s incident was… resolved. But Ibuki’s killer… was one of the fifteen of them left alive.

And Hajime was going to discover the truth of who killed her.

~*~

“Now then, let’s begin with a simple explanation of the Class Trial!” Monokuma gave his usual starting hoo-ha speech. “During the Class Trial, you will present your arguments for who the killer is, and vote for ‘whodunit.’ If you vote correctly, then only the Blackened will receive punishment. But if you pick the wrong person… I’ll punish everyone **besides** the Blackened, and that person will earn the right to leave this island! Now then, why not take it slooow, and talk about the motive? I’m sure you have lots to talk about with just that alone~!”

“You mean those… bottle things, right?” Nekomaru said, crudely picking his nose.

Teruteru combed his hair nervously.

“Oooh, why should we talk about that…? Big waste o’ time, if you ask me!” He grinned with just the slightest bit of a twitch.

Byakuya raised a finger to his temple shrewdly.

“Really? I don’t think so. There’s one particular motive that this case centers around… So that’s exactly where we should start.”

Fuyuhiko snorted derisively.

“What you’re really saying is that, ‘this fucker tried to kill one damn bitch, so he probably killed the airhead.’ Just go ahead and say it. Stop beating around the bush.” The yakuza sneered at them all as they stared in stunned disbelief.

Chiaki hummed doubtfully.

“I’m pretty sure we’re split on that, actually… Not all of us think you did it, Kuzuryu-kun. We just have to establish that you do have a connection to this case.”

Fuyuhiko huffed, crossed his arms, and looked away in aggravation. Hajime rubbed his chin speculatively.

“Okay… Well, to start, what did Kuzuryu receive from Monokuma? Why would he have killed Ibuki?”

Chisa nodded slowly, as she proceeded to explain; she hoped that by doing so, the yakuza would take it a little better if it came from her mouth.

“Kuzuryu-kun received news about his sister’s death, and specifically how she was killed. While the killer was apparently a girl none of us except Koizumi remembers, that girl did have friends in Koizumi, Saionji, Mioda, and Tsumiki. The latter three were pretty much unrelated to the murder of Kuzuryu’s sister, but it was noted they were friends with this ‘Sato’ girl.”

“Yeah. I didn’t give a shit about those other chicks.” Fuyuhiko snapped, clenching a fist tightly in frustration. “The only bitch that mattered was the one that helped cover up her pal’s murder, so that’s the one I damn confronted! You all saw the fallout of that shitshow.”

Mahiru, face pale, stared down at the floor anxiously.

“I told you, I don’t remember any of that! And even if I did, what you did in return was no better! You **killed** Sato for something stupid like revenge!”

Fuyuhiko snarled heatedly.

“The **fuck** did you just say?! You think Natsumi’s life was **stupid**?! That bitch of a childhood friend of yours got her just desserts! **She killed my sister**! I am **not** apologizing for that shit!”

Hajime froze as that name came up.

_‘Natsumi… Isn’t that the name of…?’_ He trailed off in his mind, recalling his own motive.

“You had no right!” Mahiru pressed, oblivious to the gears turning in the brunet’s head, tears pricking at her eyes as she pointed heatedly at the yakuza. “Killing my friend didn’t bring your sister back! What’d you even hope to gain by doing that?!”

“Eye for an eye!” Fuyuhiko roared back at her, nostrils flaring. “That’s the kind of life I live in! I don’t remember doing it, but I know exactly how I must have felt. The only way I was ever gonna find any damn peace was putting a fucking bullet in that damn murderer’s head. I dunno if I’d put you on the same level as your **pal** , but you at least deserved some broken bones for tryin’ to cover her shit up.”

Mahiru opened her mouth to yell back at him, but Chisa cut in before it could escalate further.

“That’s enough! Kuzuryu-kun, I know how angry and sad you must feel, but you went too far! You can’t justify murder; you might’ve had your reasons, but that doesn’t make them right!” The teacher then turned to Mahiru. “And Koizumi… I know she was your friend. But Sato did commit a murder. You should’ve considered how Kuzuryu-kun felt, too. Even if you didn’t get along with Natsumi yourself, nothing could justify her death, either. Kuzuryu-kun lost his family because of your friend, and you tried to cover that up. You had a part in this, too, so we can’t just blame Kuzuryu-kun for everything.”

Mahiru fell silent, her face guilt-ridden but also mildly frustrated. Fuyuhiko huffed and looked away again, clamming up. Nagito spread his arms out theatrically.

“Well, that suffices for an opening act, wouldn’t you say? We’ve established Kuzuryu-kun’s connection with the victim, as well as Koizumi and Tsumiki.”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head and frowned thoughtfully.

“Who woulda thought there was a connection like that…? Jeez. And we’re questioning if Kuzuryu coulda killed Mioda or not…?”

“She was friends with that Sato bitch, but that’s **all** she was!” Fuyuhiko snapped, glaring at the mechanic. “She didn’t cover any shit up like Koizumi did, so I had **no** reason to kill her! Peko didn’t either, so get that shit out of your head, too!”

“We don’t know that for sure.” Mukuro pointed out, thinning her lips. “With anger like the kind you just showed us, it’s hard to believe you would’ve let this go, even after you failed with the first confrontation. For all we know, you killed Mioda so that you could kill Koizumi with the rest of us.”

Fuyuhiko’s face turned a dark shade of red in his fury as he whirled on the soldier.

“The **fuck** did you just say?! I’m not gonna just… murder some random chick to get at that **bitch** over there!” The yakuza fumed, pointing towards Mahiru.

“There’d be little difference, wouldn’t there?” Mukuro snapped, coldly glaring back at the yakuza. “Even if you killed Koizumi specifically, the rest of us would die if you wanted to escape!”

“ **Stop spewing that bullshit**!” Fuyuhiko roared. “I said I didn’t know if I wanted Koizumi **dead**!”

“And that’s supposed to reassure us?” Mukuro arched an eyebrow suspiciously, to which the yakuza had nothing to say. He clamped his mouth shut and just had a glaring contest with the dark-haired girl.

“The motive’s clear.” Nagito repeated himself. “How about we look into the opportunity Kuzuryu had to murder Mioda? It seems like the most reasonable next step.”

Chiaki tapped her chin, staring up at the ceiling in thought.

“Kuzuryu didn’t have a lot of chances to commit the murder… Ibuki was still alive when he and Pekoyama were restricted to their cottages.”

“That doesn’t mean he **didn’t** have a chance…” Mukuro argued back.

Byakuya crossed his arms, frowning.

“The one and only opportunity Kuzuryu would have had was when he escaped from his cottage last night. Around 9pm was when I made the discovery that he’d escaped.”

“I wasn’t out **that** long…!” Fuyuhiko pointed out, raising up twitching hands as he seethed.

“You were missing for approximately half an hour.” Gundham pointed out. “That is ten times the amount of time it took for Mioda to expire!”

Kazuichi placed one hand on his hip as he scowled.

“Yeah. I’ll bet he used the rest of that free time to set up the library!”

Sonia shivered in dread.

“Y-You are saying he set the library on fire and brought down the chandelier, in all that time?!”

“Hold on!” Nekomaru bellowed. “The fire took place in the morning! He might’ve had time to set up the scene, but maybe he didn’t deal the killing blow to Mioda, y’know?”

Mahiru placed her hands on her hips and scowled.

“That’s right! Leave it to a gutless coward like him to leave the **dirty work** to Pekoyama! She at least had a few minutes to set the library on fire, and kill Mioda at the same time if he doused the library in gasoline the night before!”

Fuyuhiko’s face turned a slight shade of purple as he spat in outrage.

“ **Peko didn’t kill Mioda, you assholes**! You don’t even have proof I saw Mioda at all last night! You don’t even know what I did!”

Byakuya pointed at the yakuza accusingly.

“That is not true. There is at least one thing that we know you did, last night. After all, you were found loitering around the beach house.”

Nagito waved a hand casually as he pulled out the blood-stained bottle with a crumpled note inside, to the mounting horror of the rapidly paling yakuza.

“We found this tucked away in the back of the closet inside the beach house! The very place you’d been hanging around!”

Fuyuhiko quivered, taking one step back as he stared at the bottle in dread.

“Y… You don’t know for sure I’m the one who hid that shit! Was Mioda bleeding?! ‘Cause I’m pretty sure she was burned alive…!”

Mikan poked her fingers together anxiously.

“W-Well… W-We do know Ibuki was struck once, in the back of the head, and sh-she was likely bleeding from it…”

Fuyuhiko’s eyes widened at the Ultimate Nurse’s discovery, and couldn’t find words to disprove her. Byakuya crossed his arms and humphed.

“It’s not just the blow to the back of Ibuki’s head… The note inside incriminates you, as well.”

Nagito removed the note from the bottle and proceeded to read it aloud.

“’Young Master, I will put an end to it. The Young Mistress’s life must be avenged, and it is my fault you are imprisoned against your will. I failed to kill Koizumi, but I will make her feel the same pain you felt. Eye for an eye. You will find her friend in the music studio… Know that everything I did, I did for you, Young Master. I am your tool. The instrument to carry out your will. You may throw away my life, or use this as an opportunity to escape… Whichever you choose, I will support you.’” Nagito smiled enigmatically once he’d recited the notes contents. “Pretty condemning evidence, wouldn’t you say? Is it really any wonder you snuck out that night?”

Kazuichi scratched his cheek as he frowned.

“Hey, hold on a minute… The music studio? Tanaka and I found the word ‘Justice’ carved on the wall there! Though it was covered up by a piece of paper… Plus, there was a smudge on the floor where someone wiped something up…”

Gundham crossed his arms and looked off to the side, burying the lower part of his face in his scarf.

“That’s not all. Mioda’s notepad was found on the floor in the recording studio. And when we further investigated the building, my minions found a bloodstained cloth in a trash can behind the front desk!” He lifted up the pink, bloodstained cloth. Hajime’s brow furrowed as he recognized it.

“That’s… That’s the handkerchief Ibuki used to wear. But if you found all that at the studio, then…”

Gundham belted out a hearty, evil laugh.

“Fwahahaha! Indeed! Mioda was likely cornered and killed in that music studio!”

Chiaki hummed doubtfully, tilting her head at the breeder.

“I dunno if she was killed there… The Monokuma File said the killer burned her to death. Were there any scorch marks on the floor?”

Kazuichi scratched his head.

“Uhh… no. Just that smudge that we think was a bloodstain, wiped up by the cloth before someone threw it away.”

“Well… It’s not like they could keep the cloth with them. And the rules are pretty clear about littering anywhere on the island…” Nekomaru rumbled, crossing his arms and nodding sagely.

“He still took the risk to hide the bottle, though.” Mahiru pointed out. one hand on her hip as she wagged a finger.

Hajime rubbed his chin.

“That was probably because of the note in the bottle…” He reasoned. “He couldn’t risk us finding the note, if it connected to him and Pekoyama. It’s not like he expected to be seen hanging around the beach house.”

Chisa’s brow creased in concern as she turned towards the yakuza, whose shoulders had slumped in defeat and his head hung in shame.

“Kuzuryu-kun…? Could you tell us what happened? Please?”

Fuyuhiko took a deep, shuddering breath.

“You all saw right through me, why the fuck not…?” Fuyuhiko heaved a sigh before explaining his story while his eyes remained closed. “Last night was fucking Hell. You guys grilled me and Peko ‘til like 8:30, and then said we’d take a breather and figure out what the hell to do tomorrow. Nevermind ditched early, but Togami stayed behind for a bit to make sure I was ‘okay’ or some shit. Then he decided to step out and talk with Sensei.

The yakuza opened his eyes, and he never looked more exhausted than he did in this moment. His hands remained stuffed in his pockets.

“Like you guys said, around 9:00, I heard someone knock on my window. I went to look, but there was only a note there. The one that shithead read out loud.” He glowered at the ever-smiling luckster. “I knew if Peko was determined enough, she’d find a way out of her room. So I had to go and see if she’d really done it… If I could stop her, I was gonna do it. There was no way committing murder **now** was ever gonna not be linked back to us; there was no fucking point in killing Koizumi or Mioda or Tsumiki. But I knew Peko, and she’s stubborn as hell. So I ran all the way to the music studio… Shoulda used a scooter, but, those things are noisy as shit, and I couldn’t be seen out and around, so I ran.

Fuyuhiko squeezed his eyes shut again, with a pained expression.

“When I got there, Mioda was… she was sprawled out on the floor, big bloody gaping wound on her head and a small pool of blood next to her. I saw the bloody bottle, too, but the worst part was seeing that message on the wall. ‘Justice’. I… I knew it wouldn’t be long before Togami found out I snuck out. I figured Mioda was dead as a doornail, so all I could do was try and cover for Peko. She murdered because of me, so I was gonna get her out of here. I couldn’t erase the ‘Justice’ graffiti, so I covered it up. Then I wiped the bloodstain off the floor, ‘cause I was gonna move Mioda’s body after I ditched the bottle and the note. But then you guys found me just after I did that, so I couldn’t move the body. I thought for sure the jig was up, but you guys never found the body. I… all I could do was stay quiet. There was no way in hell I was gonna snitch on Peko. She’d get out of here if I had to die to make that happen.”

Peko, who had remained silent up until that point, stared at the yakuza in wide-eyed shock.

“Y-Young M… F-Fuyuhiko…” She mumbled, catching herself as the blond glared at her for nearly addressing him by that title again. Fuyuhiko raised his twitching hands.

“I dunno what the hell happened to Mioda after I got returned to my room. But I know Peko didn’t kill her! Togami said she ran straight to the library! She couldn’t have set all that up and killed Mioda after moving her from the music studio… That’s just insane!”

For several moments, no one said anything. They couldn’t. It was just a lot to take in. Then, Mahiru spoke up again.

“Y-You… You can’t expect us to believe that!” She pointed at the yakuza accusingly. “You’re telling me putting up a piece of paper, wiping up some blood, and then ditching a bottle took half an hour?! Like hell we’d believe that!”

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched again as he heaved an exasperated sigh.

“I saw people out looking for me when I went to leave the studio!” Fuyuhiko grumbled, gnashing his teeth. “I couldn’t just move around freely with people actively looking for me! I had to wait until it seemed I had an opening, and then I ran for the closest place I could think of, that shitty diner. I was just gonna ditch the bottle in there, but I saw Togami inside talking with Hanamura, so I ran for it, out to the Chandler Beach place! I made it without being spotted at the time…”

Byakuya blinked slowly as he recalled the previous night’s search. There had been a few minutes when his back had been to the windows, and he’d been speaking with Hanamura. Had he really just missed Kuzuryu…? No one had been sent to search the music studio because Ibuki had been…

The heir narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Just as the search was beginning, Ibuki had been reported seen returning to her cabin. At the very least, her phone was in there. That instantly made **that** person’s testimony suspect…

But… first, they had to clear up the circumstances surrounding Kuzuryu and Pekoyama. They were well on track for that, now.

“To summarize, Kuzuryu went to the music studio because of the note.” Byakuya raised a finger to his temple shrewdly. “There, he found what he thought was a murder scene created by Pekoyama. But Sensei confirmed Pekoyama never left her cabin. Nevertheless, Kuzuryu tried covering up for Pekoyama, and that’s when he saw we were out looking for him. Let’s say for right now, it’s unlikely Kuzuryu had the time to move Mioda to the library – the reason being, it’s risky enough to be found having a blood-stained bottle on his person, but it’s another matter entirely to be moving a ‘corpse’ when people are looking for you. Besides… dropping that chandelier would make quite a bit of noise, and no one reported anything strange about the library when we were searching for Kuzuryu.”

Chiaki raised an index finger astutely.

“I stopped by the library last night when searching for Kuzuryu-kun. Nothing was set up at that time.”

Byakuya crossed his arms and nodded at the gamer before pointedly looking at the people still suspicious of Kuzuryu and Pekoyama.

“You see? Kuzuryu might have had that half hour to set up the scene at the library, but he was busy at the music studio and then he was hiding what he assumed was the murder weapon. Then, you had Pekoyama, who had even less time than Kuzuryu, a few minutes at most this morning. All of this points to one conclusion: Kuzuryu and Pekoyama… were set up. Of course, you could make that deduction by the fact they received notes from each other, directing them to places where they would be incriminated…”

Chisa blinked in surprise.

“Notes? S-So Pekoyama received one, too?”

Fuyuhiko’s gaze snapped to the swordswoman, as well. Peko bowed her head and gritted her teeth.

“I did… That’s why I convinced Ikusaba to let me go to the library. I told her the handwriting was his, though it did seem slightly… off.” She snapped her eyes open in alarm. “But even so! I couldn’t take the risk of it being fake. If Fuyuhiko was going to finish what he started, then… then I had to be there with him. I… If I could, I was going to strike the killing blow for him. But when I arrived, Mioda was already dead, and he was nowhere to be seen. During the investigation, Togami seemed convinced this was a setup, and he told me to listen to everything at the trial if I didn’t believe him; after hearing everything so far, I must agree with his assessment. Fuyuhiko didn’t kill Mioda, and I didn’t either! We were just told to be at the directed like puppets.”

Mukuro clenched her fists in frustration, frowning deeply.

“But… That still doesn’t explain the handwriting. You said it was close enough to Kuzuryu’s that it probably looked off because he was in a rush.”

Fuyuhiko shoved his hands in his pockets as he scowled in frustration.

“As much as I hate to admit it… Ikusaba’s got a point. Even if it seemed like it was from Peko, I wouldn’t have gone if I didn’t think she wrote it herself. Someone must’ve seen our handwriting somewhere, and copied it. That’s the only thing that makes sense.”

Kazuichi waved a fist.

“That’s obviously wrong! I mean, who the hell would know what your handwriting looks like?! If it looks like your handwriting, it’s definitely yours!”

Peko bit her lower lip as a thought occurred to her just then.

“That… might not be entirely true. At least… for myself. I don’t know how they mimicked Fuyuhiko’s handwriting, but I… I did write a note to summon someone else in order to pin the murder of Koizumi on them. I recall slipping it under their door…”

Chisa tilted her head.

“Wh-Who did you send the note to?”

Peko’s eyes panned over to the chef.

“… Hanamura.”

Teruteru shivered as he felt several gazes lock onto him.

“H-H-Huuuh?! M-M-Me…?” He clenched his fists and shivered again, not liking the attention. “N-N-Now hold on one hot minute, I-I-I-I-I mighta received somethin’ like that, b-but I didn’t go! I was too excited about dat sexy beach party!”

Peko crossed her arms and narrowed her gaze at him.

“Nevertheless, you did have that note… I know you did.”

Teruteru fumed as he stomped his foot furiously.

“I TOL’ YOU TA WAIT A MOMENT, DIDN’ I?!” He bellowed. “I-I tossed that thing straight in the trash after we found ya bonked Hinata! It shoulda been in the beach house this whooole time! I didn’ want anythin’ ta do with y’all!”

Hajime rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“… So that note was also accessible to the killer… I thought it was just the mask, but I guess they got the note from the beach house, too…”

Nagito grinned as he crossed his arms.

“Oh? What’s this about a mask now?”

Mahiru was the one who answered the luckster.

“There was a weird anime mask under the bench in the beach house! I saw it soon after Hinata was attacked. We think Kuzuryu and Pekoyama were going to use it, somehow.”

Nagito scowled at what was a reasonable answer to the question he’d asked.

“I’m sorry, but I was asking **Hinata** , not you. Could you be quiet for a moment?” The white-haired boy then spread his arms jovially, ignoring the indignant glare the photographer shot him, and grinned wider at the brunet standing next to her. “Now then~… You still haven’t answered my question, Hinata. How was a mask used in this murder? As far as I know, this has never come up.”

Hajime ran a hand through his hair with slight exasperation.

“Komaeda…” He huffed at the expectant looks he received, and not just from the luckster in question. Reluctantly, he had Mahiru show one of the photos she took of the crime scene; this one showing the mask up close. “We found this burned up mask at the crime scene. Like Koizumi said, it seemed like something Kuzuryu or Pekoyama were going to use, back at the beach house. The killer must have used this as another way to trick them. They used that graffiti to fool Kuzuryu, and then they had the mask to fool Pekoyama.”

Peko bowed her head again and shakily nodded.

“… When I saw that mask there, I believed Fuyuhiko had used it for the intention it was initially for – to make people think of Sparkling Justice.”

Chisa mouthed that name to herself before realization dawned on her.

“Sparkling…? Oh…! That serial killer Nevermind-chan told us about…”

Fuyuhiko smirked self-depreciatively.

“Yeah… That’s what I thought Peko was aiming for with that graffiti, at the music studio. It held one meaning for me – justice for Natsumi – but it also was supposed to throw you guys off. That’s what I figured at the time.”

Peko nodded slowly, too.

“That’s why I tried to destroy that mask by throwing it in the fire. When I realized that I had inadvertently alerted Togami to finding something, I hung up and waited for all of you to arrive. I thought that Fuyuhiko had set up that crime scene, so all I could do was try to point your suspicions at me, not that it was very difficult to do so. I live as Fuyuhiko’s sword… it was all I could do.”

“I **told** you, I don’t need a fucking tool…!” Fuyuhiko scowled disapprovingly at her, and Peko could only hang her head, the revelations from the previous evening still ringing in her ears.

“… I know.” The silver-haired girl mumbled.

Sonia tilted her head curiously.

“So… Kuzuryu and Pekoyama **were** set up? It really does seem like neither of them could have committed this murder…”

Kazuichi pointed accusingly yet again at the yakuza.

“D-Don’t be so sure, Sonia-san…! I think they’re just tryin’ to mislead us! There’s still a 30-minute gap with Kuzuryu runnin’ around, last night!”

Gundham nodded fiercely in agreement.

“Recall the Dark One’s hint – there could be an accomplice to this bloody spectacle. And these two would certainly help each other at the risk of their own lives…!”

Chisa hummed doubtfully tapping her cheek.

“I think there’s something else that hints at Kuzuryu-kun’s innocence… I mean, when we consider the crime scene, what would a killer or an accomplice have to do to set up the scene?”

Hajime blinked before slowly nodding at the teacher’s logic.

“I see… So there is something to that. We don’t know when Mioda died. But even if Kuzuryu moved her to the library – and Nanami basically confirmed he didn’t – he’d still have to throw gasoline around everywhere to prepare for the fire, and he’d have to bring down the chandelier, because according to Togami there was no sound of that when Pekoyama arrived at the scene. But the most important clue here is the gas.”

Byakuya’s brow furrowed in slight confusion.

“The gas…?”

Chisa grinned and placed her hands behind her back, preening a little.

“Don’tcha think if you’d spilled a ton of that stuff around, the smell would end up sticking to you even if the gas itself didn’t?”

Sonia nodded in agreement at that, beaming softly.

“Oh, yes… Kazuichi does carry that scent quite often, when refilling the scooters…”

Kazuichi scratched his cheek sheepishly.

“H-Hey… Is that still why you won’t get too close to me after I’ve been in the shop…?” He chuckled nervously.

Sonia just shook her head, never dropping her pleasant beam.

“… I do not think it is the oil.”

“Aww, man! It is me, huh?!” Kazuichi groaned as the princess just giggled at his expense. He sighed before nodding reluctantly, cradling his forehead tiredly. “… Okay, the gas kinda clings to you… But what’s that prove?”

Chisa just cocked her head, turning to the breeder next.

“Tanaka-kun. When you stumbled on Kuzuryu-kun last night by the beach house, did he… smell? Even a little?”

Gundham’s eyes widened in realization.

“No… No he did not.” And the breeder knew what that gasoline smelled like, just as Sonia did. They’d been around the mechanic that long to be able to tell.

Byakuya’s frown deepened.

“That… isn’t the only thing clearing Kuzuryu’s name. There is one other detail you all have forgotten, over the course of this trial – the GPS was supposed to help in keeping track of everyone. Kuzuryu, of course, left his behind, which is why it became a very big problem for everyone’s safety. But he isn’t the only one that clearly didn’t have his phone at all times…”

Hajime’s eyes widened in recognition.

“Ibuki’s phone! You said you confirmed it was shown to be in her cottage, last night.”

Byakuya nodded in confirmation.

“That’s right. And the reason I didn’t check on Ibuki last night was because someone assured me they had seen her… I took them at their word. And if we are to believe Kuzuryu’s testimony, if I had just been more thorough, we might have been able to save Ibuki… **I** might have been able to save her. This negligence falls squarely on me.”

The heir squared his shoulders before crossing his arms and glaring over at the blonde.

“With that in mind… Would you care to explain yourself, Nevermind? Explain what you could not possibly have seen?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I knew I wouldn't wrap up the trial this week.... XD So many twists and turns.... So many still to come. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) But surely, you all are getting a clearer picture now, yes? 
> 
> At this stage there are maybe, ooh.... 2-3 major suspects on the table. Do not be fooled, this would be like the middle part of the trial, if this were in-game. Do not cast your ballots yet~ 
> 
> ... Though do feel free to keep the speculation coming. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "Hajime over here unlocking ULTRA INSTINCT faster than Goku ever did. I'm so proud and yet so scared of him!
> 
> But on that note... do you think whacking him in the head would just keep causing him to level up? Like, by the very end, he'll have gone SSGSS ULTRA INSTINCT Kaioken x20 and completely floored everyone with his mad investigation skills after being conked like... what... 15 times?
> 
> I vote we test this theory...
> 
> PEKO!!!" - TheGreatWave74
> 
> .... I knew, from the moment I laid eyes on this, it had the potential to be Comment of the Week. But man, it had some stiff competition.
> 
> Nevertheless.... This still made me giggle out loud, even a week later. I just had to commemorate you, sir. XD This... This Peko bonking shtick has become such a meme.... What have I done?! I've doomed us all! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	21. Chapter 2, Part 9: The Writing's on the Wall

“With that in mind… Would you care to explain yourself, Nevermind? Explain what you could not possibly have seen?” The heir’s words resounded in the trial room, and the silence that pervaded the air afterwards became so palpable and thick that it could choke a man… Indeed, some looked to be having a difficult time, steadying their breathing, but it was mostly out of suspense and tension, rather than true understanding of the heir’s inquiry.

Nevertheless, Sonia kept her composure and had a profound, elegant confusion painted on her face. One befitting a Princess.

“What I could not possibly have seen?” The blonde murmured, blinking slowly. “Togami-kun, I’m not sure what you mean?”

Byakuya’s gaze narrowed, and his frown deepened.

“Last night, when I first discovered that Kuzuryu-kun had escaped. You were the first person that I encountered, stepping out of your cottage. Or more accurately, you were standing outside, with your door opened – anyone would have made the assumption you were checking on a disturbance. But that wasn’t true, was it? No. Your phone was still in your cottage, the GPS confirmed it. You were just returning so that I would be none the wiser when I did, inevitably, alert you to Kuzuryu-kun’s escape. You **had** to make a show of it, because my first instinct would have been to call you, after getting off the phone with Sensei. But since you were just moving around outside without yours, and I could have emerged from Kuzuryu’s cottage at any moment, you had no time to retrieve it.”

Sonia’s brow furrowed in confusion, frowning a little, herself.

“Togami-kun… I am still not sure what you are driving at? I really was just stepping out of my cottage. I heard noises outside, and I grew concerned.”

Byakuya clenched a fist in frustration.

“Nevermind. Tell everyone what you saw **before** I emerged from Kuzuryu’s cottage.” The heir demanded, gritting his teeth. He knew his instincts weren’t wrong on this. Nobody else had been outside without their phones!

Sonia lightly stroked her chin as her brow furrowed.

“When I first opened my door, I saw Mioda’s door closing. At the time, I assumed it was Mioda.”

Byakuya felt his neck tighten as he grinded his teeth.

“Nevermind, that is **not** what you told me! You **assured** me it was Mioda, and I took your word for it! But as we have just proven by Kuzuryu’s testimony, Mioda could **not** have been in her room! She was in the Music Studio, unconscious.”

Sonia’s fingers intertwined as she pleaded with the heir, her expression showing genuine remorse.

“Togami-kun, I am so sorry! I… I thought that Mioda was the only one with the key to her cottage, so I believed it could be no one else… And your GPS device did show her phone was in the cottage! That was why I was so certain at the time.” She closed her eyes in anguish. “Please forgive me! It was foolish of me to have assumed that without actually seeing Ibuki herself…”

Byakuya froze as the Princess brought up those points. That… That was very true. The key to Ibuki’s cottage had not come up yet. Hajime had reported it was not on Ibuki’s body… That could only mean the killer had it.

And that meant… Could he have been wrong? He had locked on Sonia first because she’d been outside her cottage without her phone. Yet if she had actually seen something, and come to the conclusion that Ibuki was in her cottage based off the access to the cottage and the cell phone, then yes. It was very possible this was all one big misunderstanding…

_‘But Nevermind doesn’t have proof that she **was** in her cottage…’ _A cynical part of his mind shrewdly pointed out. And that was true, as well. Sonia only had her eyewitness account to go off of; and it was a dubious one, at that.

Hajime rubbed his chin thoughtfully. 

“I think… we should actually talk about that search a little. That half hour was used to throw suspicion on Kuzuryu… so what was everyone doing?”

Byakuya gave a tiny smirk at the brunet’s musings. That was exactly what they needed to do to break this stalemate. He appreciated the fact Hinata was still on his game.

Chisa flipped through her notepad and hummed.

“If I recall, Kuzuryu-kun slipped out around 9, and that was found out soon after. Togami-kun said the only people still outside the hotel were Souda, Tanaka, and Hanamura.” She raised a pointer finger astutely. “Pekoyama, Ikusaba, and I stayed in Pekoyama’s cottage for the duration of the search; we didn’t want to complicate things.”

“After Togami ran into me, we decided to ensure everyone at the hotel was alright.” Sonia explained. “Mioda had just returned to her room, or so we assumed; but that still left Tsumiki and Koizumi in possible danger, so we checked on them first. After that, Togami-kun checked on Komaeda and Nidai, while I asked Nanami if she could assist us in the search.”

Chiaki tapped her chin.

“We joined back up with Togami, and then we left the hotel grounds. Since Souda and Tanaka were at the service shop and zoo, Nevermind and I brought them up to speed while Togami went on ahead to check on Hanamura at the diner on Second Island.”

Gundham crossed his arms and scowled deeply.

“Once it became clear that the four of us were in no danger, we split off in pairs to scour the islands for that **wayward soul** …” The breeder intoned, shooting the yakuza a smoldering glare.

Fuyuhiko growled, balling a hand into a fist.

“I **told** you, asshole, I didn’t do it! I saw you runnin’ around outside, and knew I couldn’t waltz just anywhere!”

“True.” Hajime concurred, rubbing his chin. “At the time, you guys thought it was just Kuzuryu and Hanamura out there, and Togami was already checking up on him. How’d you guys split up?”

Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head.

“Nanami and Tanaka went ahead to Second Island, while Sonia-san and I handled First and Center Islands. We doubled back to the hotel on our end, just to make sure Kuzuryu wasn’t skulking around there, but then we split up to cover more ground… I handled First Island while Sonia-san took Center Island.”

Sonia nodded primly.

“While I doubted Kuzuryu would have gone to Center Island, I did wish to patrol the routes between First and Second Island so he could not move freely between them. I didn’t see anyone, aside from Togami-kun and Hanamura.”

Byakuya’s brow furrowed as he recalled that evening. That… was true. In his haste, frequently checking on the GPS and getting Hanamura back to the hotel, he encountered Nevermind on Center Island. And as her testimony stated, she **had** been patrolling it, from what he could tell from her phone walking back and forth between the First and Second Island gates. He believed it had been a good idea, at the time; it still seemed quite a reasonable action.

It didn’t clear Sonia of suspicion. But it did make him seriously question if he’d jumped the gun a little, suspecting her based off her testimony.

“So Souda was on First Island, Nevermind was on Center Island, and Nanami and Tanaka were on Second Island.” Hajime ran a hand through his hair. “Nanami said the library wasn’t set up at the time. Togami tracked down Hanamura and returned him to the hotel. Tanaka was the one that ended up finding Kuzuryu around the beach house. Souda… what were you doing at the time?”

Kazuichi seemed to glitch out, being put under the spotlight. He rubbed the back of his head nervously, grinning shakily.

“M-M-Me…? I was lookin’ for Kuzuryu, like you guys! ‘Course, he wasn’t on First Island, so I never found anything.”

That vagueness didn’t settle well with Hajime. He frowned, turning to the heir.

“Hey, did Mioda’s phone ever… move, Togami?”

Byakuya shook his head.

“Not last night. I assumed that Mioda had returned to her room for the night; it didn’t move until morning, and it was left in the music studio for most of that time.”

_‘Most of the time… not all of it.’_ Hajime thought to himself, feeling like there was more there, and Byakuya was waiting for the appropriate time to reveal it. With a killer in the group… Hajime couldn’t blame the heir for being cautious.

Mahiru frowned, clasping her hands behind her back.

“Hey… Souda’s the one who made the phones, right? And the GPS tracking thing for Togami? Wouldn’t he know the best ways to manipulate those things?”

The room went deathly quiet as the photographer brought up that excellent point. But Nagito was quick to follow up the redhead’s deduction as he spread his arms out grandly.

“Not just that! Souda-kun doesn’t have an alibi for the morning, either! And like we said, the killer would have had to deal with the smell of dousing the library and Mioda in gasoline… What better way than to hide in plain sight? You don’t have to deal with the smell if it’s always on you. The gasoline had to come from his shop, anyway.”

People began to murmur amongst themselves, the more they considered the potential of Kazuichi as a suspect. It wasn’t outside the realm of possibility. Byakuya was chewing on his nails, the more he thought it over. Hajime’s brow furrowed, honestly feeling mixed about the direction this conversation was going. Mukuro, Fuyuhiko, and Peko seemed more certain, the more they reflected on it.

Of course, not everyone was convinced.

“P-Please stop! Just hold on a minute!” Sonia cried out, looking distinctly pale. Gundham raised a twitching hand furiously, releasing a guttural growl.

“Dispense with these ludicrous accusations! Kazuichi Souda could not be the killer! In fact, I deny the very basis! He had no reason to murder Mioda!”

“You fuckers! Do you know the kind of situation we’re in right now?!” Fuyuhiko growled, balling his hand into a fist furiously. “We are going to **die** if we get this wrong! Unless you got something better than ‘motive’, we’ve gotta question this cowardly bastard! In case you forgot, it’s been him and **you** that’s been breathin’ down me and Peko’s necks about being the killer!”

Sonia clasped her hands in front of her and clenched her eyes shut in anguish.

“Souda-kun might act impulsively at times, but he would never stoop to murder!” The blonde feverishly argued. “I entrusted him with First Island last night, and he never crossed over into Second Island when we were looking for Kuzuryu!”

Chisa crossed her arms, frowning empathically at the Princess.

“But Nevermind… if he knew how to cheat the GPS, he wouldn’t need to move Mioda around during the search for Kuzuryu. He wouldn’t have to do anything until you all returned to the hotel for the night.”

Byakuya’s brow furrowed as he chewed on his nails anxiously.

“He would have to act quickly, since Mioda was only knocked out when Kuzuryu found her. It was a balancing act that relied on Kuzuryu staying quiet, but as long as he believed Peko was responsible, that was going to happen. Souda’s cabin was right next to the front gate, too… While we were occupied with Kuzuryu, he **could** have slipped out his window with none of us being the wiser… No one had further business with him that night.”

Gundham crossed his arms, scowling as he turned his head to the side, burying the lower half of his face in his scarf.

“ **However** … I was with him for much of the morning! He had discovered that four containers of gas were missing, as well as a scooter. My disciple **would not** have committed murder and told me about those things!”

Mukuro’s gaze narrowed as she focused on this testimony.

“Not unless he wanted to remove the suspicion from himself… Passing it off as ‘someone stole these things, please help me search’, he creates a cover story for something that only he should have had awareness about, on a regular basis.”

“He did not **ask** me to assist in his search,” Gundham growled at the soldier, still holding up a twitching hand. “As his Master, Souda’s troubles are my responsibility, so the universe decreed I was to lend my power to his search for the missing items… And that is what I did.”

“That still doesn’t prove Souda didn’t manipulate you into a meaningless search…” Peko pointed out, crossing her arms. “Who else but him would have known where he stored those containers?”

Gundham became more riled up, and Sonia still seemed ready to argue for Kazuichi’s case, as well. Hajime’s brows knit together as he shook his head slowly to try and bring everyone back on track.

“… Hang on. We’re bouncing all over the place, and we haven’t even heard from Souda himself. Souda, what do you have to say about… any of this?”

As all focus shifted over the mechanic, Kazuichi rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. His grin had dropped, and his gaze was pinned to the floor guiltily. He took a deep, shuddering breath after several painful moments of feeling everyone’s eyes on him.

“I-I’m sorry, you guys… This was my fault. From start to finish… It’s like Kuzuryu said, I’m… a coward. Nothing but a coward…” He chuckled weakly, and he couldn’t raise his head to look them in the eye.

Sonia gasped, growing paler by the second as she clasped a hand over her mouth.

“S-Souda-kun… Y-You… You are not admitting to…?” She trailed off, shaking her head feverishly as she just couldn’t finish that sentence. She clutched at her heart in anguish. “P-Please… Cease talking…!”

This time, Kazuichi did raise his head a little to look over at Sonia, and he leaned on his podium for support.

“Sonia-san… I can’t deny it anymore. I… I killed Mioda. I didn’t want to… B-But Kuzuryu and Pekoyama, they made it so easy! I… I had to get out. I had to try. My dad’s a piece of crap, but… he needs me. I had… to go home…” He gripped the podium hard, his heartache oozing into his words.

Chisa’s face softened as she looked over at the mechanic.

“Souda-kun… If you were distressed, you should have come told me…!” Grief reflected in the teacher’s eyes as the mechanic shook his head firmly, lowering his gaze again.

“What… what good would that do?” Kazuichi bit out hoarsely, trying to hold back the tears. “You already had Komaeda, Pekoyama, and Kuzuryu to deal with. Throwing me onto the pile would have just been too much… At least in this case, if I failed, you wouldn’t have to put up with me anymore ‘cause I’d be executed. And if the murder plan failed at any point, well… At least you guys would know I’m a problem, too. And Mioda would have lived.”

Hajime’s eyes widened slightly in realization.

“Is that why you tried to trick Kuzuryu? And why you made that big fire in the library? You **wanted** your plan to be foiled?”

The pink-haired teen rubbed the back of his neck again and barked out a short, bitter laugh.

“I… I guess so. I wanted to be stopped. That’s the only explanation, isn’t it? Got Kuzuryu all riled up, and got you guys to go look for him… But still, no one ever found out. And I was too much of a spineless coward to admit anything, myself.” He lifted his head again and adopted a solemn expression. “Don’t pity or feel sorry for me. I don’t deserve it. I killed Mioda, and I made you guys work it all out. Just execute me already.”

“ **S-Stop**!” Sonia cried out, looking more frantic than ever. “S-Souda-kun, you couldn’t have killed Mioda! You didn’t know about Mioda’s connection to Kuzuryu!”

Hajime rubbed his chin as his frown deepened.

_‘That’s true… At the beginning of the trial, he didn’t even know that much about Kuzuryu’s motive… And I’ll bet that’s not the only thing he didn’t know.’_ The brunet thought to himself with narrowed eyes.

“Y-You told me about it, Sonia-san!” Kazuichi barked out, shaking a fist in aggravation. “Th-There’s nothing more to discuss! Just get to voting time already!”

“Wait.” Hajime barked out authoritatively, raising an index finger and pointing at the mechanic. “If you really did it, Souda, then tell us how you did this, from start to finish. You owe us that much before we can even consider jumping to the vote!”

Monokuma hung his head in disappointment.

“Aww! You guys are no fun! Just this once, I wanna have the fastest trial ever…” The monochrome bear moped, shaking his head wistfully.

“You’re just the worst!” Monomi raged, still hogtied and hanging in the air besides the throne. “How can you be so evil?!”

Monokuma’s paws flew over his mouth as he giggled.

“ **I’m** not the one who wasted Kentucky Fried Ibuki, y’know~!” The bear belted out a cruel laugh. “Killing the girl and then eating her~… That **really** would have made the trial exciting! Can’t do an autopsy if the body’s all gobbled up~!”

“Wh-What?! N-Now you’ve gone too far…!” Monomi yelled.

Not surprisingly, everyone ignored the bickering stuffed animals in the background. Kazuichi rubbed the back of his head, scowling at having to review the murder.

“I-It’s not all that complicated… I knocked Ibuki out at the music studio, and set up the ‘Justice message and posed the body for Kuzuryu to find!” The mechanic began his retelling of events.

Hajime halted him for a moment.

“Wait! How did you knock Ibuki out?” The brunet prompted the mechanic.

Kazuichi groaned.

“Ain’t it obvious?! I clubbed her in the back of the head with the bottle!” He huffed and placed one hand on his hip, gritting his teeth a little. “Anyway… After I set up that scene, I knew Kuzuryu was gonna conceal evidence and all that. I wrote him that note, making him think Pekoyama did it, after all. S-So I didn’t need to do much until after you guys brought him back… I waited a bit, left my phone in my cottage, and then went back to the music studio before Mioda woke up. I tied her up and gagged her, and then transported her to the library with a scooter. Then, I set up the library while everybody was sleeping; doused the place in gasoline and brought down that chandelier. I also left that ‘Sparkling Justice’ mask that Pekoyama left in the beach house; it was supposed to make her think Kuzuryu had killed Mioda. I didn’t set the place on fire yet, though.”

Mahiru placed her hands on her hips and scowled.

“What was the chandelier for, anyway?! That just seemed pointless! It didn’t keep anyone out, and you weren’t trying to keep Ibuki in there.”

“I… well…” Kazuichi griped, fumbling with his words. “The point was, if someone went to investigate, they’d have to go deeper into the library, y’know?! And if I summoned someone else to investigate the library, they’d catch that other person in there with a dead body! Gimme a break, you couldn’t even figure that out?!”

Byakuya cocked his head slightly, keeping his arms crossed.

“… I see. Well, that is what we ended up doing with Pekoyama, tailing her, though it wasn’t manipulation on your part… So you waited until the next morning to kill Ibuki?”

Kazuichi ran a hand over his head exasperatedly.

“She was tied up and gagged! Even if she woke up, she wasn’t goin’ anywhere. I didn’t think anyone would be going to the library first thing in the morning, so I wasn’t in a rush; and if someone did find her, that just meant my plan failed, and Mioda would rat me out! Problem solved.” Kazuichi sighed tiredly, slumping where he stood. “’Course, no one did… Everyone was gonna be at the ‘concert’ on First Island’s beach, thanks to those invitations I stole from Mioda’s place. So after I got Tanaka to help me look for the gas and scooter, we split up and I went over to the library to set it on fire and kill Mioda before Pekoyama showed up. I already slipped that note to her, so I knew she was gonna sneak over to the library instead of going to the concert. After that, I just had to keep my head low ‘til you guys found the body. That’s it. That’s everything I did.”

As the mechanic finished recapping the murder, they all went quiet again. Hardly anyone could believe it, but there didn’t seem to be inconsistencies with his recounting of events. It’s like he’d said; setting up a murder with so many potential pitfalls, there was no way he didn’t have some hesitation within him. He wanted to be stopped. At the same time, he seemed desperate to escape, which is why he went through with the murder, anyway…

There didn’t seem to be any contradictions. And still, Nagito chimed in, crossing his arms with a smug grin.

“Well, I have to hand it to you, Souda… that was quite the plan! You really sold us on how you could have pulled this off, well done.”

Kazuichi’s brow furrowed in confusion, and he scowled with uncertainty, one hand on his hip.

“Y-Yeah… I’m the only one who could’ve done this, y’know. You guys already worked it out; I had nothing left to lose, confessing it all.”

Nagito nodded sagely, keeping his stance.

“Certainly! There’s just a few things I’d like cleared up, if that’s okay?” At the mechanic’s hesitant nod, the luckster stroked his chin as he looked down thoughtfully. “The first thing that strikes me as strange is Mioda’s body. The fire needed to be put out by Monokuma before we could investigate; however, bizarrely enough, when we got there, the body wasn’t wet in the slightest… Now, why would that be?”

The pink-haired teen massaged his forehead in aggravation, slouching a little.

“That’s… well… I-I guess the fire on Mioda’s body was basically just embers by the time Monokuma showed up? It’s not… that big of a deal, right?”

Nagito’s grin widened as he waved casually.

“Of course not! It’s just a minor detail that I couldn’t help noticing. Don’t mind trash like me.”

As Kazuichi grumbled in annoyance at the luckster bringing up pointless details, Peko’s brow furrowed as she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“… Wait. That is strange. When I went into the library and found the body, it wasn’t on fire in the slightest. The library itself was an inferno, yet the body was already long dead…”

Byakuya nodded slowly as he recalled going into the library after Pekoyama, seeing Ibuki o the floor, as well. Mukuro and Fuyuhiko seemed to be similarly thinking back on their memories, too.

“True… If Ibuki was killed the same time the library was set ablaze, she should have still been on fire, too.” He narrowed his eyes at the pink-haired teen. “Explain yourself, Souda.”

Kazuichi paled, palming his forehead in dread.

“G-Gimme a break! S-So Mioda was the first thing I torched, then I torched the rest of the library! What’s the problem with that?!”

“That’s not the **only** peculiar thing about your story.” Hajime raised an index finger astutely. “You were right that Ibuki was clubbed in the back of the head, but that’s not what the killer did to knock Ibuki out. Hitting her like that, that’s no guarantee of rendering her unconscious. If Kuzuryu thought for a second that Ibuki was still alive, he wouldn’t have cleaned up the ‘crime scene’. The killer had to make **sure** Ibuki was out like a light.”

Kazuichi shook a fist furiously.

“Even if it’s risky, it’s the only injury Mioda got, wasn’t it?! What are you trying to say?!”

Mikan squeezed her eyes shut as she plucked up the courage to speak out.

“H-H-Hinata-kun is right! M-Mioda got hit in the back of the head, b-but she was also hit with a stun gun… Th-There was a small burn on the s-side of her body…”

Kazuichi paled further. Byakuya’s eyes widened in remembrance as he looked to the brunet.

“That’s right! You mentioned that in reporting what Tsumiki found… Yet a taser hasn’t come up in this trial yet. I was wondering if that ever would be explained.” The heir muttered.

“The marks were small, and obviously the burn parts were hard to make out with the body, but Tsumiki found them, and they were definitely recent.” Hajime nodded and smiled gratefully at the nurse, who bashfully returned the smile in kind, cupping her cheek. “Doesn’t it make more sense for the killer to have caught Ibuki off-guard with a stun gun, anyway? I think between Ibuki’s speed and her sense of hearing, it’d be hard to club her in the back of the head while she’s conscious.”

Nekomaru hummed lowly, crossing his arms as his brow furrowed.

“So, what you mean is, the killer knocked Mioda out with the taser and **then** clubbed her to make it seem like she died?”

Hajime nodded slowly.

“That’s right. It’s another reason the killer chose the murder method they did; there was a chance we never would have uncovered these facts with the severe burns. It’s really a stroke of luck we did, because the Monokuma File certainly never brought them up.”

Teruteru cocked his head in confusion.

“Eh? But ain’t that just because they don’t have anythin’ to do with the murder? Ain’t that what the file said?”

Chiaki raised an index finger astutely.

“Actually, that’s another hint towards the fake murder scene that Kuzuryu found. By excluding those injuries from the file, Monokuma helped us understand that two separate ‘incidents’ happened; the stuff with the stun gun and the blow to the back of the head happened earlier.”

Gundham hummed uncertainly.

“However. Isn’t it more likely that someone tried to kill Mioda with the bottle, created the scene for Kuzuryu to find, and then a completely different individual found Mioda and killed her by burning?”

Hajime shook his head firmly in rejection of this theory.

“No. That doesn’t work because of who was left to discover Mioda’s body during the search for Kuzuryu. Togami returned Hanamura to the hotel, so they give each other an alibi for that time. The only other people on Second Island were you and Nanami; Nevermind and Souda were on Center and First Islands, and Nevermind never encountered anyone besides Togami and Hanamura in her patrol of Center Island. It would have had to have been one of you that tied Ibuki up and set the library ablaze this morning. Nanami’s out because she was with the rest of us on the beach, and had been playing games with Komaeda before that. That just leaves you, Tanaka…”

Gundham growled as he clenched a fist in outrage.

“But I wouldn’t murder that obnoxiously loud girl! I had been on a quest to retrieve Souda’s items before I encountered the Dark Queen, and we headed for the fateful concert together!”

“Exactly.” Hajime pointed out. “Maybe you had an opportunity, but the fact you ran into Nevermind closed that opportunity off. Like we’ve been saying, the killer would have given themselves away with the smell of gas all over them. You didn’t have time to go wash off the stench or get cleaned up; but you came to the beach not smelling like Souda.”

Mahiru held a hand over her mouth in surprise.

“H-Hold on… I’m not really sure why it’s gotta be Nanami or Tanaka that stumbled on Mioda. Couldn’t anybody have done that after you guys found Kuzuryu?”

Nagito shook his head, crossing his arms and grinning.

“Kuzuryu never breathed a word about what he found at the studio until the trial here. No one **knew** to head to the music studio to find Mioda there, except the person that attacked her and set up the scene for Kuzuryu to find. No one had any business there, either; certainly wouldn’t have broken curfew to go randomly investigate. That means any unrelated persons that found that fake scene would have had to do it during the search for Kuzuryu. And as Hinata just summed up, it’s really unlikely Tanaka or Nanami did it.”

“The only other person who might have been able to find Mioda in that scenario would have been… Nevermind…” Chisa mumbled, hand over her mouth as she went pale. But the Togami heir shook his head.

“After I returned to the hotel, I kept an eye on the trackers. Nevermind was still patrolling when I checked. It only took a few minutes to return to the hotel; Nevermind would have had to make a beeline straight for the studio, find Mioda unconscious, and return to her patrol without doing anything at the scene. A far too specific set of actions if she didn’t know about the scene at the studios.”

Mukuro’s brow furrowed as she attempted to summarize everything that was brought up.

“… So Souda didn’t know about the taser knocking Mioda out. He wasn’t aware Mioda may have been killed before the library was set on fire. And the likelihood of two separate attackers, or an accomplice, is extremely low… Are we saying Souda couldn’t have committed this murder or known about it?”

Hajime rubbed his chin.

“It’s not just all of that. Souda’s story is still incomplete in a few other ways, too.”

Kazuichi recoiled in shock.

“Th-There’s **more**?!” He screeched in terror.

Mahiru blinked before nodding as she raised an index finger in the air.

“Well, yeah! I just thought about this, but you couldn’t have used the invitations Mioda already prepared with the rest of us; those were dated a few days from now. You would have had to make up new ones and make them look like Mioda’s preferred style… I guess you could have spent the night doing it, but you never mentioned it.”

“That’s not the only thing he failed to mention.” Hajime pointed out. “He also neglected to bring up Ibuki’s phone at all… And that was clearly a part of the killer’s plans, because they wanted to give Togami the illusion Ibuki was still alive.”

Kazuichi grunted agitatedly.

“Th-That? Didn’t we already kinda point out I knew how to manipulate the phones? I just… didn’t feel like wasting my breath on something we already talked about!”

Nagito chuckled lightly, spreading his arms out grandly.

“Then explain it to us now! Of course, you’ll also have to explain everything else that’s inconsistent in your confession… But we can start with the phone.”

Kazuichi growled in frustration, massaging his forehead.

“Ain’t it obvious? I swiped it from Mioda after knocking her out… Then, I planted it in her cottage, and I made enough noise outside so Sonia-san would hear so I could pretend Mioda was returning to her room… ‘Cause Sonia-san and Togami were out there, I had to sneak out the window and the back of the cottages to return to the shop before you guys came to check on me! Th-Then I just collected it in the morning, and had it on me when delivering those invitations! Then I took it to the music studio for the rest of the morning.”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes.

“That was… a good guess of what happened. That’s exactly what I observed this morning.” The heir crossed his arms with a huff. “But Souda. You have yet to explain the invitations. Or your lack of knowledge about the taser, or your earlier surprise about Mioda’s connection to Kuzuryu’s motive… Your confession has too many holes in it.”

Peko’s frown deepened as the mechanic’s discomfort became more obvious.

“I would believe it if you copied my handwriting… Hanamura disposed of his note in the beach house, so anyone could have found it. However, there is no reason you should have known Fuyuhiko’s. This is yet another contradiction you will have to explain.”

The pink-haired teen groaned, palming his forehead.

“I just did, okay?! Who else knew about the gas?! There was no one else sneakin’ around without their phone! I built the damn GPS, so no one knows it better than me! **I don’t have an alibi**! Who else is there?! You ruled out everyone else!”

Nagito raised an index finger, grin widening.

“Oh, I don’t know, probably the same person you’ve been protecting?”

“P-Protecting?!” Kazuichi spluttered, face going ashen. “Wh-What the hell are you talking about…? If I wasn’t the killer, I’d be screwing us all by confessing like this! Not just you guys, but me, too!”

“That hasn’t stopped you from considering there **is** someone that knew about Kuzuryu’s motive, and even his bond with Pekoyama, better than you did.” Nagito nonchalantly waved and chuckled. “Or maybe it’s not that you **knew** , per se… But something you found during the investigation made you concerned? That might just explain your eagerness to hop onto suspects that aren’t **that** person, which include even yourself. Unless you happen to be into self-flagellation.”

“Sh… Shut up! Shut up, shut up!” Kazuichi howled, shaking his fist at the luckster. “There’s no one else without an alibi! **I’m** the freaking coward that killed Mioda!”

Gundham reeled back a little in shock, ignoring the mechanic for a moment.

“Th… Then… It’s true? Souda made the false confession to save another soul? Who?! Who is the sinner Souda was willing to lay down his life for? To lay down all of our lives?!”

Chiaki frowned sadly, pulling her hood over her head sullenly.

“There’s really only one person it could be… One person he doesn’t want to believe is the culprit, at all costs.”

Fuyuhiko stiffened before he bared his teeth at the mechanic, who was tugging his beanie over his head anxiously.

“Are you fucking serious right now?! All that bullshit confession, because he wanted to throw **all** our lives away?!”

Chisa’s face softened as she gazed at Kazuichi.

“... I don’t think he wanted to risk everyone’s lives. He really wanted to believe in that person, and that’s why he wanted us to execute him… Isn’t that why you did this, Souda-kun?”

Kazuichi moaned pitifully.

“Just… Just stop… I’m the slimeball killer… You don’t hafta execute anyone else. Just stop talking. Please…”

Hajime took a deep breath and shook his head.

“Souda… Monokuma’s not gonna allow you to take the fall for the killer. If you keep pressing on like this, we’ll all get executed. Do you really want that on your conscience?”

Prompted, the monochrome bear rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Oh, I dunno~… I could be a sucker for the whole ‘I controlled her miiind!’ excuse. You never know.” His paws flew to his mouth to smother the giggles before he fully burst out laughing, clutching his belly. “Gahaha! As if! 14 executions vs 1? I’m a quantity type of bear, in case you couldn’t tell!”

Kazuichi moaned in defeat, yanking his beanie down his face even harder. Mukuro’s brow knit together in confusion.

“’Her’?” She echoed, not a hundred percent certain of who the bear was referring to. But some of the others did. Byakuya sighed tiredly before swiveling back to glare the Princess down.

“In the end, we do come back to you, after all. You can’t prove your alibi, after you left Kuzuryu’s cabin. Furthermore, being in his cabin allowed you a chance to glimpse anything that might have had Kuzuryu’s handwriting – and you would have had firsthand knowledge of Kuzuryu’s motive, having assisted in the questioning.”

Sonia had fallen silent long before now, but she now clutched at her bow with renewed anguish, and she squeezed her eyes shut and turned away in shame. Hajime and Chiaki stared at the Princess with grief, but also with resolve for what needed to be done. Nekomaru, Teruteru, Peko, Fuyuhiko, Mahiru, Mikan, and Mukuro appeared shocked the most, not expecting to circle back around to the Princess as a suspect. Nagito stared with wise eyes, as if he knew they’d been headed for this outcome for some time. Kazuichi muttered apologies and other unintelligible things, unable to look to the blonde himself.

And Gundham… he just looked crushed. After all this, after resolving Kazuichi’s false confession and the possibility of him being the culprit… **this** was the conclusion they had come to? Was there truly no other possibilities?

Chisa bit her lower lip and hung her head a little as she chipped in, too.

“I… I don’t want to believe it, either… But Nevermind helped us make the invitations for Mioda-chan’s concert… She would have known how to make new ones. She and Mioda were close, too – it wouldn’t be a stretch if she was helping Mioda plan the concert…” She pleadingly turned to the Princess. “Nevermind… Just please, tell us we’re wrong. Tell us we overlooked something.”

Sonia’s eyes cracked open, and her voice became strained as she tried to respond to the renewed suspicion, looking around the courtroom desperately.

“I… The truth is… I…” But she couldn’t choke anything out beyond that. It was between her and Kazuichi at this point, and she knew her friends weren’t going to accept a new theory without lots of evidence to support it.

She was stuck. In more ways than one. She couldn’t even muster the courage to just… come clean. Even though a significant part of her wanted nothing more than to clear Kazuichi of all suspicion… There was something holding her back. It was painfully obvious now how conflicted the Princess of Novoselic was.

Hajime took a deep, steadying breath.

“I didn’t want to bring this up… But Nevermind, you were… You were in that wetsuit, when you came to the beach.”

Sonia choked out a gasp, hand flying over her mouth as she went deathly pale.

“Wh… What?!”

Instead of addressing her, Hajime turned to the breeder next.

“Tanaka, you’re the one that ran into Nevermind while you were helping Souda find that stuff that was missing. Where… did you guys bump into each other?”

Gundham blinked in astonishment at being addressed so suddenly, but he quickly got over it as he crossed his arms.

“… Why is **that** detail so important? A fateful encounter with the Dark Queen should be celebrated, not regarded with distrust!”

“Tanaka, please…” The brunet urged with a stern countenance.

Gundham evenly met Hajime’s gaze for several tense moments before grudgingly providing an answer.

“She… She emerged from the water, by the ruins.” As Hajime seemed to give the impression he knew the breeder would say that, Gundham’s eye twitched in annoyance. “What’s wrong with that?! There are no rules against swimming, are there?”

“Swimming in this case is actually a pretty big deal.” Hajime replied, narrowing his eyes. “Now I know why that fire exit at the library bothered me so much. You didn’t have to jump in the ocean when you could just walk around the building – but that’s what our killer needed to do. We would’ve known something was off, even if they changed clothes; so they needed to deal with that just in case somebody ran into them.”

Mahiru recoiled in shock.

“B-But… But if she wore that wetsuit when setting the library on fire, wouldn’t the suit reek, too?”

Chiaki shook her head, raising an index finger.

“I think what Hinata-kun is saying is that Nevermind wore her normal clothes when setting the library on fire; then she changed into the wetsuit, and just threw her clothes into the fire to destroy evidence.”

Nagito laughed brightly, spreading out his arms again.

“That’s certainly one way to deal with the smell! And it even gives her an excuse for not having her phone! I’m sure in the original plan, she was going to try and retrieve her phone from the embassy, and then change out of the wetsuit, but Tanaka-kun derailed that plan. Worse, he derailed it at a really inopportune moment, considering where he found her.”

Sonia clutched her bow tighter, clenching her eyes shut again. She still could not muster the words for arguing one way or the other. Nekomaru balled a hand into a fist as tears pricked at his eyes.

“S-So… So Nevermind **did** kill Mioda?”

“We’ve already ruled out the possibility of different attackers or accomplices.” Hajime heaved a heavy sigh, looking down. “If she set the fire in the library, then she killed Ibuki. The timing of Ibuki’s death is something she could control, that’s why Ibuki was tied up and gagged. Could have killed Ibuki last night, could have done it right before torching the rest of the library… Either way, she fits the killer’s characteristics better than Souda did, and she did have the opportunity. I’m willing to bet she had the motive for it, too.”

Still, Sonia could not bring herself to speak. Nagito sighed in disappointment, one hand on his hip.

“It’s such a shame, she’s not even putting up a fight! I was looking forward to any last-minute struggling… It’s been a real treat, watching Hinata-kun tear through the lies and contradictions~!”

Byakuya ignored the luckster’s attempts at goading more arguments out of the suspect and glared critically at her.

“Nevermind, if you have nothing further to add, we should move onto the voting. At this stage… I don’t think we’re rushing this. We’ve talked over the possibilities.”

The Princess bowed her head mournfully, her throat still clenching tightly as tears rolled down her face. Unsurprisingly, this spurred Kazuichi into action, one last time.

“H-Hang on a minute…! If Sonia-san was the killer, she’d have the key to Mioda’s room! But she doesn’t!” The mechanic held up a key for all of them to see. “I… I have it! So… Please! Stop doubting Sonia-san!!!”

Mahiru paled at the new evidence.

“Th… That’s obviously yours! You wouldn’t just bring up something like that **now** if it wasn’t a bluff!”

Monokuma patted his belly contently.

“Nope, nope! I can confirm that is Ibuki Mioda’s room key! All your room keys are a little different from one another, and I can confirm that is most definitely hers~!”

Teruteru trembled, where he was standing.

“H-H-How?!”

“He must have picked it up during the investigation…” Byakuya gritted his teeth. But without evidence to prove how the mechanic had acquired it…

Everyone seemed at a loss for how to proceed. It was true that most of the evidence and testimony pointed to Nevermind as the culprit, but so long as there remained a shadow of a doubt, they couldn’t just move to the voting. Even Hajime was wracking his brain with how to proceed…

“S-Souda-kun… I… I told you to stop…” The Princess croaked, her eyes red and puffy from all the tears.

Kazuichi whipped his head around to her, blinking in shock.

“S-Sonia-san?”

“Togami-kun was right, the first time he brought up… my phone…” Sonia drooped her shoulders in defeat. She released a shaky breath. “I did not have it on me until we searched for Kuzuryu. That’s why… I missed the call from you last night, Souda-kun. That’s why you found the scooter outside the embassy with Mioda’s room key. I-I am so sorry, Souda-kun… Please stop risking your life for me… I am so sorry, everyone… I am… so sorry, Gundham…”

The class was stunned into silence again at Sonia’s admission that devolved into renewed sobbing and weeping. Kazuichi bitterly gnashed his teeth, and Gundham could only watch, feeling like an outsider to something that he should have known about well before now…

It wasn’t long before they cast their ballots. There was nothing more that could be said. This whole incident had been emotionally draining, but this was… heart-wrenching.

The weight of pulling a lever had never felt heavier… But they didn’t have a choice.

~*~

“Whoo-hoo! You guys are riiight again~!” Monokuma cheered, once the votes had been tallied. He hopped up from his chair and patted his belly in amusement. “Wasn’t a unanimous verdict, buuut… 13 to 1 to 1? Majority rules~! Souda-chan and Tanaka-chan need to be more careful, though. Voting themselves as the culprit in a last ditch try to save the Princess? What are you, Mario and Luigi?! Bwahahaha!”

“I wasn’t… gonna condemn Sonia-san!” Kazuichi cried, gnashing his teeth. “I’m the one who failed her! I… I could have stopped her!”

Gundham shook his head firmly, raising a twitching hand furiously.

“I… am the one who has failed. I failed both of you. This falls squarely on my shoulders!”

“Souda-kun! Gundham!” Sonia cried out miserably.

Fuyuhiko let out an impatient growl, his hands twitching in front of him furiously.

“Would you **cut it out** with the sacrificial lamb bullshit already?! Just what the hell is going on?!” The yakuza bellowed.

Sonia opened her mouth to answer, but Kazuichi beat her to it, pointing at the blond heatedly.

“Y-You’re the one that should shut up, you asshole! I-It’s your fault Sonia-san… that she… It’s **your fault**!” The mechanic raked a hand over his head exasperatedly. “I started getting a bad feeling last night… S-Sonia-san was in there with you and Togami all afternoon, so I just wanted to call and check on her… B-But she never picked up.”

“But… She searched for Kuzuryu with you.” Mahiru pointed out. “So you had to have talked to her!”

Kazuichi nodded shakily.

“I-I did… but, even before everything got crazy, I… I saw her crossing over into Center Island. I was gonna go over to the hotel to check on her, and that’s why I spotted her.” He explained uneasily. “She didn’t see me, though, so I figured sh-she was busy with somethin’… It wasn’t anything shady. I just went back to the shop after that, didn’t wanna bother her. But then the stuff with Kuzuryu happened a little while later.”

Byakuya pinched the bridge of his nose.

“So you concealed the fact that you **had** seen Nevermind outside her room, last night. Souda, this was important information, **we needed to know this**.”

“I didn’t follow her, so what good would that have done?! No way was I gonna let you guys suspect her!” Kazuichi griped, palming his forehead again. “Sonia-san’s been trying her best to be there for us ever since she was made the Rep, and to keep everyone happy! Somebody needed to believe in her, s-so that’s what I did!”

Nagito stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Is that why you panicked when you found Mioda’s key outside the embassy with the missing scooter? Did this happen after you and Tanaka split up to search for the missing items?”

Kazuichi’s shoulders slumped.

“I… I didn’t know whose room key it was, at first. But I was certain that was the scooter that was missing. Then Mioda was found dead, and.... And I **really** started to get a bad feeling… I’d already returned the scooter by the time Mioda was found; I guess I just missed you guys, running off to the library. But I kept the key on me, and I went to check whose key it was after we were called to Monokuma Rock. I… That’s when I knew. I-I failed Sonia-san. The only thing I could do was take the fall for her. B-But…”

As the mechanic broke down miserably, and they watched helplessly, Sonia took a deep, shuddering breath and gave Kazuichi a bitter grin.

“Souda-kun, you’re not the one who has failed… I… am the one that has failed.” She looked around the room at the others. “Prevailing wisdom says… A vassal cannot serve two Kings. I feel… that the opposite holds true, as well. A monarch cannot rule over two peoples. Ever since Komaeda-kun reminded me of who and what I was, I… I had this suspicion I would succumb to my desperation, sooner rather than later. And then Monokuma gave us the recent incentive, and… and I could no longer ignore the homesickness in my heart. I threw myself harder into bonding with all of you; I did all that I could to see you as my people, as well… You… You were all wonderful! I did not want a single one of you to die – not after what happened to Owari and Saionji. But then… Kuzuryu-kun and Pekoyama-san happened. Koizumi-san and Hinata-kun were put in danger. I knew… that another murder was all but inevitable.

Sonia’s eyes became glassy as she stared off into space, her voice oozing with helplessness.

“I could not go through with this again… It was too much for me to bear. However – I was not just your classmate. I… I am the Princess of Novoselic. And my people need me. The letters… Even now, they haunt me. I am so scared of what might have happened, in the time that I have been away… And so, I made use of the opening Kuzuryu-kun and Pekoyama-san provided. I gathered all the information and materials I needed; and then I approached Mioda, and began to set the trap…”

~*~

_“’Justice’? What’s that mean?” Ibuki tilted her head, perplexed. At that moment, the sound of footsteps entered her ears, disrupting her train of thought. The musician turned around and cocked her head at the newcomer as they filled the doorway with their silhouette, their shadow cast on Ibuki. “Oh, hey, Nevermind! Ibuki’s having a quarter-life crisis at the moment! Can you believe it?! Somebody stole Ibuki’s guitar…!”_

_Sonia covered her mouth in shock._

_“I-I am sorry to hear that, Mioda… Maybe I can be of assistance?” Sonia approached casually, footsteps echoing as she walked…_

_Ibuki just hung her head and let out a depressed sigh, making Sonia freeze in her tracks._

_“Everything’s just so messed up, Nevermind-chan… Just a couple days ago, I didn’t think anybody’d be murdering each other… But now look! Saionji-chan and Owari-chan died. Pekoyama-chan whacked Hajime-chan, stressing Byakuya-chan and everyone else the hell out… Why’s it gotta be like this? Ibuki just wants everyone to get along and have a great time. That’s all Ibuki wants! We don’t need to stress about all the crap out there, ‘cause we’re all here! Alive! If we only got a few weeks here, why kill each other? Do we really hate each other that much we wanna get out of here as quickly as possible?”_

_Sonia felt a vice around her heart as Ibuki spoke about all this. It… It really hit close to home. Maybe Ibuki could talk her out of it…_

_Maybe she wasn’t beyond redemption yet._

_“I know what you mean… I have two special friends here that I don’t want to die… And… And I know you are the same way…” Sonia’s smile was pained, and she hoped Ibuki could be oblivious to it…_

_Ibuki nodded eagerly._

_“Ibuki would die if anything happened to Hajime-chan and Byakuya-chan! Hajime-chan’s already hurt, so Ibuki’s down in the dumps as it is… But Ibuki’s gotta keep believing things will get better! ‘Cause the moment you stop… that’s when ya give up on life… y’know?” Ibuki rubbed the back of her head awkwardly._

_Sonia moaned internally. She knew… all too well. Ibuki’s views made sense. An upbeat attitude like this… Sonia knew she needed to have the same, indefatigable spirit._

_“I-I… I am so sorry.” The blonde whispered so softly, tears streaming down her face as she bowed her head, but Ibuki had heard it._

_“E-Eh? What’s the matter, Nevermind-chan…?” Ibuki’s eyes widened and she fell to the floor in a crumpled heap at Sonia’s feet, unconscious, as the noise of a taser filled the room._

_Sonia inconsolably shook her head. She simply did not have the luxury to keep holding out… Unlike Ibuki, Sonia really was torn in two different directions. She had… to try and return to her people._

_And… if she didn’t… If she failed… Then Souda and Gundham would be safe. As would Hinata and Togami._

_This was… all she could do…_

~*~

Sonia released another shaky breath as she finished recounting her final meeting with Ibuki. She held the gazes of both Hajime and Byakuya, shaking her head sorrowfully.

“I do not expect you to forgive me, nor do I deserve it. I have… betrayed you all. But Mioda wanted you to live.” She nodded towards the brunet and the heir before turning to the mechanic and breeder. “… And I want you to live. I took so many risks… Because I didn’t want to get away with my sin. I did want to escape… But I didn’t want you to die. I hope one day… you can understand. Please… do not give up on life. It is what Ibuki wanted. For all of you.”

Sonia trembled fearfully as she turned to face Monokuma, unable to face her teacher and classmates any further.

“I… I am ready now. Give me your worst.” Her countenance grew stern, her eyes determined and ready to accept whatever Punishment awaited her.

Monokuma panted sultrily.

“Oooooh~! Sooo **cool** ~! A failure of a Princess seeing her subjects off… It’s only fair they’re right there with you up ‘til the very end, riiight~?”

Sonia’s eyes widened in horror.

“Wh-What?!”

Monokuma mischievously showed his dark half, raising a paw airily.

“Don’t worry, my dear~! Only **you** can save them! IIIT’S PUNISHMENT TIIIME~!”

Sonia, of course, objected to this ominous decision on Monokuma’s part… They all did. But it was all for naught – within moments they were all dragged off with collars snapping closed around their necks, and the chains yanking them to the trial ground with Sonia…

~*~

**The Queen Rules Alone on a Voyage of the Dammed: Ultimate Princess, Sonia Nevermind’s Execution**

The execution ground was surprisingly a small town, overlooked by a massive dam. A Monokuma in a newspaper boy’s uniform hurriedly ran around, distributing a paper with a headline warning of a bomb scare – a bomb had been placed somewhere in town, and only the Queen could save the people.

Sonia was very confused at first. It took her a few minutes to get her bearings, but she found her classmates shackled in what were apparently small, water-tight bomb shelters. Each shelter housed about two students each, and each shelter also contained what was a potential bomb set on a two-minute timer that began the moment she set foot in the first shelter. Obviously, Sonia had no time to check on the bombs to see which one would be authentic.

Ergo, the path before her was clear. She would remove each potential bomb from the seven shelters. Thankfully, the shelters were clustered together, and the ‘bombs’ did not seem to be motion-sensitive.

The first ones saved were Chiaki and Nekomaru. The moment Sonia safely removed the bomb from the shelter, a water-tight door slid down to protect her friends. Sonia quickly set the first potential bomb down a small distance away, and quickly moved onto the next shelter. The process repeated each time – remove the bomb, a door slid down to protect the students inside.

Nagito and Chisa.

Teruteru and Mikan.

Mahiru and Mukuro.

Peko and Fuyuhiko.

Hajime and Byakuya.

Time was quick to pass by… But thankfully, she still had fifteen seconds for the last shelter. Gundham and Kazuichi. She afforded them one last, remorseful glance before rushing their potential bomb out of their shelter. The water-tight door, as always, slid shut behind her.

That was the last bomb. And fifteen seconds were already up; the device in Sonia’s hands beeped noisily, and she feared the worst… However… The explosion did not occur in her hands. Rather, she heard it occur off in the distance, far removed from the shelters.

It was then that Sonia realized, the bomb was planted on the dam. And apparently, it was powerful enough to shatter the wall, cracks forming noticeable webs across the surface. Hastily, Sonia tried to return to Kazuichi and Gundham’s shelter, but the door would not budge…

It took mere moments for the dam to develop a massive hole as water gushed out of the weakened points. So much water was on its way to the small town… Water in enough quantities that Sonia had never experienced anything like this in her whole lifetime; it was as if a small ocean was surging towards her. The town would be absolutely be flooded.

And yet… Her friends would be safe. The shelters were definitely water-tight. The only one in danger… was her.

As the water surged closer and closer, eventually eclipsing Sonia’s vision, the Princess, the would-be Queen, accepted her fate. She had murdered Ibuki so cruelly… This was just what she deserved. A whole flood reserved for her. She was immediately washed away, and drowning came soon after. Soon after the town became overrun by the water, Monokuma’s pirate ship sailed into view. He soon reached a spot where a giant plug was buried in the ground of the town. He dropped anchor, and then soon hoisted it to pull the plug. It took time, but the water all poured into the drain, making the water levels fall as Sonia’s body was also sucked down the drain.

Eventually, the shelters were opened back up, the students released from their shackles as they warily emerged from the shelters.

But Sonia was long gone. The Queen could save others… but not herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.... I'm not completely happy with how this chapter panned out, but I think I hit the highlights I wanted to. Mostly. One of my regrets was not delving more into post-trial reactions to the verdict and the events that happened, but I think I'll touch on those either at the start of Future Arc's next segment, which is next week, or at the start of Chapter 3. 
> 
> ... Probably Chapter 3, because I like to keep Hajime's group and Makoto's group separate, for the time being. But we'll see how it goes. XD Either way, don't be bummed~ We'll get to that juicy drama with Class 77. There's lots of stuff for them to talk about.... ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "Fucking Nagito going: ''Excuse me, bitch, but I was asking Hinata-kun, not you,'' might just be one of the funniest bits in this fic so far. He's got it baaad~" - Pyruus
> 
> I'm a little disappointed just 'cause I already picked Pyruus out recently... But I liked that part of the comment, I really did. lol Nagito-boy just wants to solve murders with his new bestie, Hinata-kun~ Is that so wrong? It's not like there'll be a falling out later. Him, Hinata-kun, and Ikusaba-chan are BFF's~
> 
> .... Right? :3


	22. Future Arc, Act II: The Writing's on the Wall

“You should get some rest.”

Mondo growled as his hands tightened around his elbows, practically leaning back in his seat out of spite.

“Fuck off! It’s my shift.” He didn’t give the heir even a glance, moodily staring at the bright computer screens in the darkened room.

Byakuya snorted, rolling his eyes.

“Mondo. This is your third straight shift for the night. Don’t tell me you intend to take Celes’s, too?”

“Somebody has to.” The biker snapped, teeth grinding together, glaring harder at the screens.

The heir heaved a sigh. It was all too clear what this defensive hostility was about, and he wasn’t about to beat around the bush. Neither of them wanted or needed be tactful about… this.

“You already took most of last night’s. I’ll be damned if I allow you a third day without sleep.” The blond crossed his arms and raised a finger to his temple astutely.

Mondo all but snarled, still not dignifying the heir with a glance.

“How’re you gonna make me, huh?! You’re not the boss of me, asshat!”

“No, but I **can** go to Celes about this.” Byakuya coldly reminded him, making the biker recoil for once in shock as he blanched.

“You… **the fuck** , Byakuya?!” Mondo growled, whirling on the heir furiously. “You askin’ to get your teeth smashed in?! Celes ain’t in no shape to be up and around after **that**!”

Byakuya thinned his lips, narrowing his eyes at the biker.

“If it will convince you to get some damn sleep, I will do what needs to be done. You’re no good to us dead on your feet **another** day, Mondo.”

The biker’s seat screeched against the floor as he stiffly rose up, squaring his shoulders as he marched to the Togami heir threateningly.

“You go anywhere near that chick’s door, I **will** break somethin’, Byakuya! And it ain’t gonna be pretty!” He punched his palm before cracking his knuckles.

Byakuya stood his ground, his unwavering glare matching the hot one that Mondo was trying to burn into his very soul. Instead of responding to the blunt threat, however…

“Do you think this is what Taka would have wanted?” The heir spoke in an even tone, again putting the biker off-balance.

“Wh… What the **hell** are you talking about, douchebag?” Mondo’s posture relaxed marginally in shock.

“Byakuya merely gestured at the bright screens and the dark room.

“This.” The heir blandly replied before elaborating. “Running yourself into the ground. Do you think this is what Taka would have wanted?”

Mondo grinded his teeth together as he raised a twitching hand violently.

“The hell do **you know** what Bro wanted, huh?! You tryin’ to be a fucking clown now? You never gave a shit about us! All of it was one giant fucking **game** to you…!”

Byakuya’s frown deepened.

“After our memories were stolen, certainly. You were all strangers to me, and games existed to be won. But that’s neither here nor there. We got our memories back, so yes… I did know Taka. And I know exactly how he would have reacted to your reckless inanity.” The blond stalked past Mondo and over to the chair the biker was formerly occupying, and he came to a stop a few feet in front of it. “You remember, too. Beneath all that sweat and muscle, I know you have a brain somewhere between those two ears, Mondo.”

Mondo’s hands balled into fists at his sides until they popped as he trembled, facing away from the heir.

“Bro would be here if it wasn’t for my stupid ass. I can’t just sleep after seeing that shit all over again… I **have** to protect you guys. It’s the only way I’ll be able to look Bro in the eye.” The biker muttered, squeezing his eyes shut, deep with regret.

Byakuya didn’t respond for several moments. When he did, Mondo could feel his hackles rising again.

“Taka chose to murder Aoi. Don’t delude yourself that you were the cause any more than I or Makoto.”

Mondo’s teeth clenched harshly as he whirled around again, roaring at Byakuya’s back ferociously.

“You sayin’ Bro was a natural-born murderer, you bastard?! He murdered **for me** …!”

“He murdered **because Enoshima put us in that Hell** , Mondo.” Byakuya snapped without looking back at the biker. Even without checking over his shoulder, he could feel the palpable shock and disbelief Mondo was oozing with. “None of us would have turned on each other if Enoshima hadn’t stolen our memories. Most of us never would have entertained the thought of killing if Enoshima hadn’t provided incentives to scare us into action. Stop punishing yourself for something that was out of your hands the moment you woke up with amnesia. You want to protect us? Well, get some rest. Your strength will be needed in the coming days, not this moment.”

Mondo’s shoulders slumped as he processed the heir’s words. It was… bizarre… to hear Byakuya be so… **reasonable**. Not butting heads with the prick was an alien experience for Mondo… so he fell on those instincts.

“Hey. I might’ve missed most of last night, but you pulled double shift, too.” The biker growled out lowly. He turned his back and grudgingly made for the exit. “Wake me when it’s supposed to be Celes’s shift. You hear me, asshole?”

Byakuya snorted derisively, sitting in the chair as he crossed one leg over the other and crossed his arms.

“If that will make you rest, then fine.” Byakuya drolled, eyes locking onto the screens.

Mondo cast him one last wary, suspicious glare before stalking out of the room and returning to his room.

… He didn’t wake up until the next morning.

~*~

Celes slid her legs over the side of the bed and paused there, just sitting and staring off into space. Dark circles hung around her eyes, indicating sleep had not gone well. Bedsheets bunched together as her hands tensely curled up, and the former gambler took a ragged breath to calm herself.

_‘I’m here…’_ The dark-haired woman ruminated. _‘I’m right where I need to be.’_

And she was. Despite events of the past few days deeply unsettling her with reminders of her mistakes in their own Killing Game, Celes was beyond the point of doubting if she should still be alive. Makoto had… been very persuasive.

…

~*~

Celes nursed a cup of tea between her hands as she sat in the cafeteria. Alone. She had told Byakuya and the others she’d be going off to bed, but that had of course been a partial lie… She tried. Couldn’t sleep. So she slipped out and brewed herself some tea in the late hours…

That left her alone with her regrets, of course. But then again, who could she unload these troubles on? Mondo and Byakuya would probably roll their eyes and say the past was the past; these regrets were the least she deserved, after everything. Chihiro wouldn’t know what to say. Gekkogahara would turn it into a full therapy session, and Celes simply wasn’t in the mood for that. She could confide in Sayaka, catatonic as she was, but if the former idol remembered anything of the discussion, she’d give hell for it, later. Celes knew that she would probably deserve it… but she still wished to avoid that, if she could.

That left Makoto, and, well… He could only console one person at a time. Celes wouldn’t impose on him. Sayaka was in a fragile state again, even worse than the last time, and **really** … Why did it always have to be the blue-haired siren? Makoto was naturally kind and good to them all, but Sayaka always seemed to get the special treatment…

The dark-haired woman slowly shook her head. No, she wouldn’t judge him for it. Judge them. Makoto and Sayaka had been a couple, back when they were in school… That wouldn’t just disappear, even if Makoto promised he’d hold off on a relationship again because of Celes and Mukuro also confessing to him…

Celes heaved another sigh. Sometimes she felt like a real heel. Certainly, they didn’t have their memories returned until joining the Future Foundation, but it should have been painfully obvious what her chances were, with the luckster. Despite succumbing to thoughts of killing, and framing Makoto for murder, Sayaka had still backed out at the last minute. Even later, during the fake trial for Makoto’s murder, she hadn’t voted for Mukuro but rather herself when she’d clearly been innocent. Sayaka, for all her faults, was good for Makoto. Didn’t have to make an effort to imitate Makoto; she already wanted to inspire others, and it didn’t take much to want to help others, either.

Sayaka had every home field advantage… every **right** to be with Makoto… But even if Celes acknowledged all of this, she couldn’t change her own feelings for the luckster. It didn’t erase her bond with Makoto, or alter the fact that he had helped change her for the better. That she wanted to repay him for that in full. Makoto had made himself essential to her… to all of them.

But still. She would not jeopardize his happiness. Even now, she refused to be a burden to him. All this regret was her cross to bear. Hers alone. It was a lonely, desperate battle, to be sure… but Makoto had given her this second chance. It was up to her to make the most of it.

“Taeko?”

The former gambler froze at the voice, and turned around just enough to see the brunet poking his head into the cafeteria curiously. She whispered softly.

“Makoto…” For a moment she was at a loss, but then she found her bearings. “Is something the matter?”

Makoto shook his head and took a few steps into the room hesitantly.

“I just needed a drink… I didn’t know anyone else was up, besides Mondo.” Even Chihiro and Miaya had retired for that evening, having been working tirelessly for the past couple days on something to recover the avatars of the dead students. They had Alter Ego to alert them to any emergencies.

Celes cracked a wry smile.

“Ah. Don’t let me keep you, then.” The dark-haired woman murmured, sparing him a few more moments of looking his way before facing forward again.

Makoto watched her with a touch of concern as he moved over to the sink, grabbing a cup from the cupboard along the way.

“How are you holding up?” The luckster suddenly asked, while filling his cup.

Celes tensed just a little at that inquiry, but then settled into old habits, schooling her emotions. She would not be a burden.

“I’m fine, Makoto… Same as you, I was just thirsty.” The dark-haired woman froze as the luckster casually sat across from her, a gentle smile gracing his features.

“The stuff with Nevermind-senpai… It wasn’t easy to watch for any of us.” Makoto chuckled sheepishly as **that** cracked through her mask immediately... kind of like taking a sledgehammer to a weakened wall. Sometimes, you just needed to be direct.

Celes stared down at her tea, so many emotions stirring behind her eyes. Rather than lash out at the luckster for breaching the topic, or telling him to go back to his room to sleep… Celes gluttonously indulged in this opportunity to speak with him.

“… I was just as foolish as she was. No… I was worse. Far worse. I wanted out, and I didn’t give a shit about anyone but you.” Celes took a shuddering breath, unable to take her eyes off her tea as it rippled from her hand shaking the cup slightly. “I would’ve paid for it, too. If Yamada hadn’t held on for a little bit longer… I would’ve gotten exactly what I deserved. Rather ironic that Nevermind killed by fire, while I would have died by fire.”

“Taeko…” Makoto muttered awkwardly taking Celes’s free hand in his own, giving a reassuring squeeze. Celes didn’t fight the contact. “That’s not who you are anymore, and even back then, it wasn’t your fault! Enoshima put us in that position, and then tricked us into thinking we were trapped! She scared the hell out of us, and people do crazy things when they’re scared. Sayaka and Mondo are like you; and even Byakuya treated the whole thing like a game when he wouldn’t have, if we’d all kept our memories…”

Celes squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head.

“Except Sayaka and Mondo backed down… I didn’t. I **would** have murdered, if Kuwata hadn’t finished the job. Hifumi was **dying** …” The dark-haired woman’s breath hitched, unable to hold back the tears anymore. She sobbed. “Makoto, I’m a monster! It doesn’t matter I was ‘pushed’ to do it, the fact that I **could** … The fact I wasn’t as strong as you, or even Sakura… Not even Byakuya was as terrible as I was!”

Makoto’s grip tightened on her hand consolingly as he leaned forward earnestly.

“Celes, stop thinking of yourself like that!” Makoto firmly held her gaze as he eyelids fluttered opened, and tear-stained eyes looked back at him in shock. “You’re not like Enoshima! A real monster… A real monster would do what you did, and have no remorse over it. Worse, they’d probably think of doing it **again** , since the first time didn’t have permanent consequences! The fact you regret your actions after all this time, that you’ve tried to be a better person since then, that makes you **human** , Celes! You’re stronger than you think. Don’t think for a moment you haven’t earned this second chance.”

Celes could feel her throat go dry, the longer she stared into Makoto’s warm, passionate eyes. That was… just like him, to find the right words to set her mind at ease. To help her find peace, within herself. Celes bit her lower lip and averted her gaze out of mild shame.

Despite trying to be strong on her own, Makoto had come to her rescue. Again. It was always like this… Why was it always like this?

“Thank you…” The former gambler muttered quietly. What else could she say here? She was too self-conscious to keep holding his gaze, but Makoto just smiled softly and stayed in her company a while longer before returning to bed. Words weren’t needed now; it was enough to be in each other’s company.

… It slipped her mind to ask how Makoto was holding up…

~*~

Indeed, Makoto had been persuasive. But Makoto had looked exhausted when they parted ways for the night. At the time, she chalked it up to just the physical kind, but then the more she thought about it… There was a lot of other things it could’ve been, and she hadn’t even asked how he was holding up… He had deserved that much, and she had been caught up in his warmth and reassurances.

Consequentially, she worried about him, as more possibilities came to her… But she didn’t want to disturb his sleep again, let alone Sayaka’s… It’d been a rough night, as a result. Any sleep Celes had gotten had been heavy and dreamless.

Celes started a little at the sudden knock on her door. She stared momentarily at it before rising up and going to answer it… On the other side was one of the last people she expected to be seeing, first thing in the morning.

“Sayaka?”

The former idol was hugging herself as she looked to Celes anxiously.

“Can I… come in?” Sayaka mumbled. Seeing no reason to refuse, Celes nodded faintly and allowed the blue-haired woman passage. Sayaka shuffled in, and then took a seat on Celes’s bed, still looking every bit as vulnerable and helpless as she had, out in the hall.

Nothing was said for a few minutes, and Celes held a knuckle over her mouth, the longer she stared at the bluenette. Sayaka… looked even worse than she did. Had the night really gone so poorly, even with Makoto’s comfort?

“What’s the matter?” Celes decided to take inspiration from Makoto and just be direct. There was no rush, per se, but she knew what it was like to stew in guilt and self-loathing… And Sayaka’s eyes were brimming with that.

“I…” Sayaka started, but then halted. The words seemed to catch in the former idol’s throat, and for several more prolonged moments, she still didn’t say anything. But then, she swallowed thickly, and looked to Celes with wide, petrified eyes. “You might have been right about me.”

Celes’s brow furrowed as she tried to mull over what the bluenette was driving at. She came up blank, however.

“… I’m sorry?” She prompted the bluenette to keep going, not wanting to make any sort of assumptions.

“B… Back in the fifth trial…” Sayaka shuddered anxiously, averting her gaze to her lap shamefully. “I… I wasn’t thinking clearly, when I thought of framing Makoto to escape. I wasn’t thinking clearly, but that’s no excuse. I thought… it was the only way out… The one reason I chose to frame him, it was because I knew… Makoto wouldn’t rat me out. I knew he would take the fall for me, like he promised.

Sayaka quivered fearfully, feeling Celes’s heated stare on her in addition to the mounting regrets and shame in her own heart.

“I didn’t have a plan. Not really.” Sayaka’s hands dropped to her lap as they fiddled together, nervously. “I was going to come back for him, but I wasn’t an idiot. I knew that this would burn all bridges with Makoto… Even if by some miracle he forgave me someday, I never would have forgiven myself. Even friendship would have been too kind for someone like me. But even so, I still considered going through with it… because there had been no other alternatives… because I was too scared and selfish… The worst part isn’t the fact I didn’t think any of it through; the worst part is that I was capable of considering a plan like that at all.”

Celes’s hands curled into fists at her side, and she bowed her head, trying to suppress the bitter, angry feelings welling up inside. It wasn’t working very well… And that, on top of the lack of good sleep, was enough to make her snap.

“We never did finish our ‘talk’ about that…” Celes hissed, snapping her head up and glaring hotly at the bluenette. “You gave **me** so much shit, but at least **I** never tried to use Makoto and throw him away…!”

Sayaka shrank in on herself and kept her gaze trained on her lap, nibbling on her lower lip.

“… I know.” The bluenette murmured, tears streaking down her face. “What I tried to do can’t be forgiven. The recent trial just proved that. I see where my attempt would have gotten me… I already regretted it after we learned all the rules about Class Trials, but seeing someone else, someone I knew back in school, succeed where I backed out at the last second… That should’ve been me. I know it should have.”

Celes struggled to reel in her rage; it wasn’t as satisfying when Sayaka was punishing herself just as much, but she’d been holding this indignant anger for much too long. It needed to be let out.

“I don’t understand how you can claim to love him when you were willing to sacrifice him.” The dark-haired woman spat contemptuously. “No dream should have been worth burning bridges with him!”

Celes half-expected to be called a hypocrite on that last claim; she certainly felt like one, having not considered how Makoto would have felt, escaping at the cost of the others’ lives. However… Sayaka didn’t jump at the chance. She just grew smaller and smaller, her tears multiplying.

“It’s my fault. I let the pressure get to me.” Sayaka mumbled, bowing her head further. “I saw my friends in danger, and… and my mind went blank. Everything we built was at stake, and I couldn’t let myself remain trapped or put myself at risk of dying… I didn’t want any of it to go to waste, for my life to just… to just end. Not like that.

Sayaka took a deep, shuddering breath and looked up at Celes with tears still staining her face.

“I don’t expect you or Makoto to ever forgive me. It’s why I wasn’t able to stay with him, last night. I had to think this through… And I just can’t get it out of my head that I was the first to succumb to the motives, and what I would’ve had to give up to escape…I’m sorry, Celes. You… You were right about me.”

Celes froze at the recent admission from the bluenette. There was one part that stuck out the most to her, and she snarled at Sayaka for it.

“You **abandoned** Makoto, last night?!” The former gambler raged.

Sayaka clenched her eyes shut and shook her head.

“I… N-No, I just… M-Makoto’s done so much for me; he should’ve had at least one night to himself. I-I needed to reflect on my past actions…”

“ **Bullshit**!” Celes snarled, striding over and shaking Sayaka by the shoulders. “Do you bother to think anything through?! Just because you sleep separately, he’s not going to stop worrying about you! But more than that… **more than that** … Did you even bother to check if **he** was okay?!

Sayaka paled at that line of questioning, indicating that no, she had very much **not** thought to do that… Celes huffed exasperatedly and released the former idol, stalking away from her with a knuckle over her mouth.

“I swear, you and I keep repeating the same mistakes. We need to do better by him. Makoto’s always been there for us, but it seems that sentiment is rarely reciprocated. If he was that exhausted last night, I can only imagine what was troubling him…”

Sayaka shivered anxiously.

“Y… You saw him…?” The bluenette whispered.

Celes sighed in frustration, but nodded, not denying it.

“He helped me when I had thoughts keeping me up, too. I assumed he had returned to watch over you, but now I regret assuming that much.” Celes pinched the bridge of her nose exasperatedly. “Sayaka, while I would love to keep hating you for what you almost did… I can’t. Regardless of what you ‘would’ have done, you still chose to take comfort in Makoto’s promises… You’re special and irreplaceable to him. You were scared like I was, and at least you admitted you were wrong to have even considered framing him. That… makes us even. Because I never considered Makoto’s feelings, either. At this point, we’re both just trying to be better than our past selves, and that’s all we can do. That… makes us human. We can’t erase the past, nor should we; but we can’t let it hang over our heads. But Makoto’s just as human as we are, and if we ever want to repay him back for everything… We need to be there for him.”

Slowly, Sayaka rose up and approached the former gambler from behind. Placing a hand on her shoulder, the bluenette offered a weak smile.

“Then let’s go. You, me, Mukuro… We’re all in the same boat. But the two of us are the only ones available right now… Mukuro’s got her hands full, and we need to bring her home. Like you said, we have to do better by Makoto.”

Celes brow furrowed as she echoed the soldier’s name in a low mumble.

“Mukuro, huh…” To be honest, with everything that happened, the soldier had slipped from her mind…

It really was fascinating, to watch Mukuro live a life without Junko fucking her up.

… Or without any of them. As good as it was to see the soldier better off than she had been before the memory wipe, Celes hadn’t expected it to… hurt… as much as it did.

Perhaps Makoto had been onto something with objecting to stripping away Mukuro’s memories… They’d done it with the best of intentions, assuming they didn’t have any other choices… But Mukuro was one of them. Class 78.

Of course it was going to hurt making her forget their time together.

~*~

Makoto rubbed the back of his neck as he finished reading the documents Chihiro had dug up.

“Huh… So Hope’s Peak really did bury that incident.” The luckster murmured. “We never even heard of it…”

Chihiro poked his chin thoughtfully, sitting next to the brunet.

“Well, it happened before we arrived… It’s not that surprising we never heard about it. No one was gonna talk about an incident that happened the previous year, not when it was about the Kuzuryu Clan.”

Makoto’s face fell as he sighed sadly.

“I guess you’re right… Sure is a weird coincidence, though! For Hinata-kun to be in the same Reserve Course class as Kuzuryu-kun’s sister. I never would have pegged him as a Reserve Course student with the way he looks now…”

Chihiro’s brow furrowed in slight concern.

“Yeah… Chiaki seems to know the story behind him, Usami, too. I guess the Neo World Program analyzed Hinata-kun, but Chiaki is… She doesn’t want Miaya and me to know about him yet. There’s a history there that we’re not seeing.”

Makoto smiled wryly and patted Chihiro on the shoulder affectionately.

“Well, I know they’d tell us if it was important. I trust you and Miaya. You guys knew what you were making with this program.”

The programmer nibbled on a finger nervously.

“Maybe… But this observer system with combining the memories of the patients… This is the first time we’re really testing it, Makoto! I really wasn’t expecting Chiaki to be so… lifelike. I… I watched her cry. This whole thing’s hurting her…”

Makoto frowned and nodded in sympathy.

“Memories… are powerful. She’s a gestalt of Class 77’s memories; I think it’s natural to think of her like Chiaki’s ghost. She… really meant a lot to them.”

Chihiro nodded sadly.

“Y-Yeah… I-I hope this gives everyone closure! They deserve that much…”

“They do deserve that much.” Makoto grinned earnestly. “And I know it’s going to mean a lot to them, when this is all over.”

The luckster and programmer sat there, grinning away each other for a few moments before they both turned at the noise of someone clearing their throat from the entrance to the command center.

Byakuya pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose once he had their attention.

“Strategy meeting. Now.”

Makoto and Chihiro exchanged a look before following the blond.

~*~

“It’s gotten worse over there.” Celes muttered, once Mondo finally took a seat, making them all present. “Komaeda helped kick off this whole thing, but Kuzuryu and Pekoyama sure didn’t help matters. They’re all fragmented now.”

Sayaka’s face fell, hands helplessly lying in her lap as she and the former gambler once again sat on either side of Makoto at the long table.

“Tanaka-kun and Souda-kun are both devastated… Not to mention Hinata-kun, Imposter-kun, and Koizumi…”

Byakuya sighed, raising a finger to his temple astutely.

“This is the strategy of these Killing Games – we know this, we **lived through this**. We can’t get caught up in Monokuma’s pace. A second murder has taken place, and we know a third is all but inevitable. But if we can just identify the ones who need Chiaki and Usami to talk to the most, we might be able to stall Monokuma until Chihiro gets an antivirus up and running.”

Mondo rolled his eyes with a huff.

“Shit, might as well sign them all up after that execution… Who’s gonna walk away from that crap knowing that Nevermind died saving their asses?”

Celes twirled a lock of hair around her finger, closing her eyes and frowning.

“Komaeda won’t care… But we should be thankful he’s occupied with Hinata for now. Nidai did something right, for a change; with the main headache entertained, we can focus on the other problem children.”

Makoto scratched his cheek sheepishly.

“Give Nidai-senpai **some** credit, Celes. I know he’s crazy about exercise and training, but he’s a pretty inspirational guy! I think he and Yukizome-sensei are our best bets with helping Chiaki and Usami get everyone through this…”

Celes held a knuckle over her mouth as her brow furrowed.

“… Perhaps. But they’re still stretched thin, Makoto. Who knows what state Kuzuryu and Pekoyama will be in after this? They, along with Komaeda, have the highest probability of being outcasts after what they tried to pull.”

Byakuya crossed his arms, meeting Celes’s eyes sternly.

“Do you really think they’ll try and pull something now? They’re in the position that you were in.”

Celes huffed testily.

“It doesn’t **have** to be them that make a move… The second murder proved that they’re good targets. Once another motive presents itself, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re in the crosshairs again.” Celes’s hands dropped to her lap as she glowered at Byakuya. “And I don’t seem to recall that you were exactly a favorite either, Byakuya. Weren’t you thinking of ‘winning the game’ at some point? Hifumi and I even tried to kill you.”

The heir scoffed dismissively.

“ **Tried** being the key word. But fair points. We should always keep a spare eye on Kuzuryu and Pekoyama; they’re both impulsive, rash, and irrational, especially when it concerns each other.”

Makoto rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“I… don’t think we have to worry about them too much, anymore. I mean… When you get a second chance at life, you kinda seize it by both hands. Kuzuryu and Pekoyama at least have each other, and I’m sure they won’t be total outcasts!”

Celes looked to Makoto meaningfully and heaved a small sigh.

“… The third incentive is coming up, though, Makoto. And if Monokuma recycles a certain temptation, Kuzuryu or Pekoyama could go for it.”

Mondo raised a twitching hand in aggravation.

“Shit…! That’s right! If that bastard pulls the ‘plus one’ crap again, people are definitely gonna be interested!”

“Tanaka-kun and Souda-kun would be tempted, too…” Sayaka fretted, hugging herself in an attempt to calm down. “And Tsumiki… I-I think the others would be okay.”

None of them wanted to entertain the idea of Mukuro finding that incentive appealing… So nobody said anything. Instead, Byakuya homed in on people that Sayaka did bring up.

“Grief is a powerful motivator. Souda has already proven he can be as irrational as Pekoyama and Kuzuryu; and honestly, I don’t want to take my chances with that chuunibyou. Those two should be the top priorities for now, with Komaeda, Kuzuryu, and Pekoyama as second priorities.”

“Hanamura and Tsumiki will be erratic, as well.” Celes additionally pointed out. “Though perhaps we can use Hinata as a distraction for Tsumiki as well, at least until we know with certainty what motive Monokuma throws at us next. That still leaves the perverted oaf.”

Chihiro anxiously chewed on a fingernail.

“Kuzuryu, Pekoyama, Komaeda, Tanaka, Souda, Hanamura, Tsumiki… Th-That’s half the remaining class… We definitely can’t cover everyone…”

“We don’t have to.” Byakuya explained with a narrowed gaze as he crossed his arms. “As long as you can bring the avatars back, and eradicate the virus, none of this will matter. Let Chiaki and Usami worry about the 77th Class. **Your** priorities are the avatars and the antivirus.”

Makoto smiled softly.

“As crazy as it’s getting over there, I’ll believe in those guys and who they were! They’re not the monsters that Enoshima brainwashed them into becoming. They’re our senpai again. We can help them get through this, both them and Mukuro.”

As they all absorbed Makoto’s encouraging speech and marginally relaxed, Celes frowned and brought up an image on a tablet for them all to see.

“Be that as it may, one more mystery thrown onto the pile is this: the message carved onto the door of the ancient ruins. ‘Wish-lined Parities’.”

“Obviously, it’s an anagram.” Byakuya snorted. “I’m still working out what it translates to, but I’ve no doubt it’s from Monokuma. The bear is up to something again, and we should probably double check the graduation system hasn’t been tampered with in some way. Nevertheless, this is just the backpage ad of a newspaper compared to the frontpage headline coming up.”

The heir flicked the image of the ancient ruin to the side for the main topic at hand, a series of profiles popping up similar to how Ultimate Despair was displayed not to long ago… Their superiors were coming. The Killing Game was being broadcast to the whole Future Foundation, and Munakata had received a tipoff from Monokuma as to their whereabouts. They all knew what was coming, by now; Makoto, Celes, and Byakuya couldn’t hide it anymore. Everyone deserved to know what was on the way.

Makoto’s shoulders slouched as he grimaced.

“… Okay, so who do we know is on the way?” The brunet couldn’t help asking, knowing Celes had stayed abreast of the situation as the ‘loyal’ Division Head that supposedly sent the email off to Munakata.

For all of Monokuma’s devious machinations, this was one silver lining, at least. They wouldn’t be blindsided completely. It left a foul taste in the former gambler’s mouth, to even play along with this farce. As if she would ever rat out Makoto and the rest of their class. However, they needed every advantage they could get… so Celes played along.

She was the only one that could.

“Munakata, Sakakura, and Tengan, for starters.” Celes took a deep, shuddering breath before resuming her report. “But of course, Tengan doesn’t go anywhere without Gozu, and it seems Mitarai persuaded Tengan to let him come, too. Kizakura didn’t seem to want to miss out, and it looks like Munakata also wrangled Kimura into coming with him. Naturally, that also means Ando and Izayoi will be joining the party, because most of the other Division Heads are mobilizing. With me and Gekkogahara here, that’s everyone except Bandai who’s staying behind.”

Sayaka, Chihiro, and Mondo’s pupils all dilated in shock. Makoto had this calm, determined appearance about him, as if he knew this might have been the case. Byakuya seemed similarly resigned to their fate, but that didn’t mean he and Makoto lacked the same nervous energy that everyone else had.

“So they’re sending… everyone. Marvelous.” Byakuya spoke in a clipped, unamused tone.

“Wh-Why would Munakata specifically request for Kimura, though?” Sayaka distressfully asked, eyebrows pinching together in concern as she spared Makoto a worried glance.

Mondo gritted his teeth, his hands twitching once more.

“Ain’t it obvious? Ultimate Despair’s all here, even if they’re killin’ each other! They wanna nip this in the bud in one fell swoop.”

“To the rest of the Foundation, you all are criminals.” Celes coldly bit out, her disdain obviously aimed at their superiors. “Intentions don’t matter to them. The fact that we helped smuggle away the biggest terrorists in modern history, that’s all they see and care about. Even I might face possible demotion, despite my… ‘heroism’ in reporting you all. Gekkogahara’s position is more secured because of her usefulness to the Foundation, and Chihiro might similarly get a slap on the wrist compared to the rest of you. It’s all going to be up to them and what they find in their ‘investigation’.”

Impulsively, Sayaka took Makoto’s hand in hers. It was as much to comfort him as it was to comfort herself. She looked to the dark-haired woman anxiously.

“C-Celes… B-Be honest, what are Makoto’s chances looking like? C-Can we convince **any** of them to hear us out?”

Byakuya tapped his temple in thought, scowling.

“With Munakata, Sakakura, Ando, and Izayoi? Not very high. We’re better off appealing to Tengan and his faction. Despite Munakata’s grabs for power, Tengan **is** the Chairman still. The fact he chose to come out here is honestly a blessing in disguise; if it was just Munakata’s faction, Makoto might’ve been looking at execution for treason right here.”

The ‘E’ word hung in the air, smothering them like a dense fog… Of course, they knew Munakata had been leery of Makoto since the beginning. His friendship with Mukuro had been too suspect, and the older man had always thought Makoto’s ideals were too soft and unrealistic.

It really was a blessing that Tengan was coming. For all their sakes.

“Let’s not forget the worst part…” The former gambler deadpanned, eyes going from person to person. “Even if Tengan can keep Munakata in check, Munakata will still be very… **motivated**. We abducted Yukizome-sensei with no explanation to him, or to Sakakura, and they will most certainly be volatile. We should honestly be thinking of getting Makoto out of here. Out of the line of fire. It’ll be hairy when their favorite scapegoat is out of reach, but at least Makoto will be **safe**.”

This seemed to mollify a few of them, but Byakuya looked unconvinced… His skepticism made sense a few moments later when Makoto shook his head firmly.

“I’m not leaving you guys! This whole mess is my fault. Mukuro, Yukizome-sensei, Class 77, I’m the one that wanted to help them all the most… I have to see this through!”

“M-Makoto!” The bluenette wailed tightening her grip on his hand in anguish as she whirled on him in distress.

“I can’t let you do this, dude!” Mondo choked out, clenching his hands into fists in aggravation.

Chihiro looked to Makoto with tears welling up in his eyes. Byakuya narrowed his gaze at the brunet

“So your choice is to be a senseless martyr? Makoto – Sayaka, Mondo, and I can come with you, if that’s what you’re concerned about. Celes, Chihiro, and Miaya would have to stay behind, but they wouldn’t be in danger like us. We would be on the run… But we would be alive.” The heir’s scowl deepened as Makoto shook his head in denial once more.

“This isn’t about throwing myself, or you guys, on the pyre.” Makoto replied with a firm, unbending steel in his tone as he placed a hand over his heart. He looked around at everyone earnestly, a fire in his eyes. “The Foundation is coming because they believe that’s what they have to do, to resolve this crisis. But we’re the same as them! We’re all here because we wanted to help the people we used to know. We haven’t given up on them. Running away now is just gonna put them in danger, and I can’t do that! If there’s even a chance where I can save them, and secure your futures too, then… I’ll stand my ground. Because we weren’t in the wrong! We don’t need to run or hide. I know… it looks bleak right now, but this is **just like the final decision Enoshima forced on us**! We didn’t back down then, even when my life was at risk. And I know… we can do it again. We’re all fighting for the future here! **We can’t lose Hope now**!”

… Well, it was hard to argue with that. They all still looked uncomfortable… uneasy about their chances. But Makoto had a good track record, in times of crises… They would make it through this. Celes, Byakuya, Mondo, Chihiro, and Sayaka were absolutely going to do everything they could to make sure they all made it out of this in one piece…

Sadly, it seemed time was against them… as it always was.

“Th… They’re here…” Chihiro mumbled, swiveling his laptop around to show a radar with ships just coming to a stop at the shores of Jabberwock Island. Even more ships were stationed further out, forming a blockade.

… It was all or nothing now. Then again… considering present circumstances, they couldn’t leave even if they wanted to. They would have to fight just as hard as their senpai, now…

‘Glory lies beyond the horizon,’ as Nidai-senpai had once put it… They had to believe in that. In Class 77 and Mukuro. In Makoto’s overflowing optimism. In themselves.

Hopefully with this incident… they could finally lay the Tragedy to rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These early Future Arc chapters don't feel like they accomplish much yet.... Prepare for that to change, next time. :3 Act III is when Future Arc starts getting multiple chapters, too. 
> 
> Here comes the Future Foundation crew~ Yesss, I'm a madman. Class 77, Chisa, and Mukuro were not enough.... WE NEEDED MOAR. MOAR CHAOS AND DESPAIR. It will be glorious~ I hope you'll all be as excited to see Munakata, Tengan, and crew as much as they will be to see Class 78~ n______n
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "I don't expect Joker to pull any punches at this point, not even against himself... ESPECIALLY against himself. After all, to make a true story of despair for others, one has to experience despair themselves." - Ultimate_Touhou_Fanatic
> 
> Wise man. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) No, I certainly do not hold back my punches when it comes to Despair and angst. But if there wasn't a method to my madness, I'd be no better than Junko~ The key is to determine what would hurt the most. Be doubly, triply sure of that. Then still doubt it because I could still have something else up my sleeve.... :3 Also keep an eye on what could be the eventual final destination~ AIF veteran readers will know that I love to make it darkest before dawn. But just which dawn awaits us, that is the ever burning question, isn't it~ ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	23. Chapter 3, Part 1: The Comedy and Tragedy of Jabberwock Island

Fire crackled on the beach. Though it was the warmest spot in the immediate area, neither of them sat by it. Peko stood over by the palm tree anxiously, nursing her elbow, while her Young Master paced aimlessly, up and down the beach but never too far to give the misunderstanding he was leaving.

They’d been like this for at least half an hour now. Sensei… let all students roam if they needed to; there’d be no more killing tonight. After that abominable execution, no one had the stomach for it. Not them, not Souda or Tanaka, not anyone. Fuyuhiko and Peko had long since adapted to the awkward silence; neither of them seemed to want to break it. Until eventually, Fuyuhiko halted while half-facing the silver-haired girl.

“I kind of always wondered if I’d be cut out for the life my parents lived. The life they wanted me to inherit. I was ready to do what it took… I didn’t need any sort of crutch or tool, not even a family name to speak for me – I wanted to prove myself with my own sweat and blood.” The blond took a ragged breath and shook his head, bowing it slightly as his hands remained stuffed in his pockets. “It’s not worth it, Peko. Losing Natsumi, almost losing you, the shitshow with Nevermind… I’m… too soft. Fucking hell, I see that now. It’s not even just you; Souda was a dumbass, but I **get him**! Him. Me. You. We were all trying to protect someone important… And it’s my fault we ended up like this at all.”

Peko’s eyes widened as her arms dropped to her sides in alarm.

“Fuyuhiko, I was the one who struck prematurely! All this paranoia and suspicion, it’s my…” She trailed off as the blond glared at her reprovingly.

“Peko, be honest, you wouldn’t have acted if I hadn’t tried settling shit with Koizumi on my own!” Fuyuhiko barked, withdrawing one hand from his pocket and balling it into a fist angrily. When she fell silent again, he nodded stiffly. “This is on me alone, but of course everyone else isn’t gonna see that. We’re both loose ends at this point. Lower and less trustworthy than that screwball Komaeda, and we can’t change that. But that **doesn’t mean** we just give up on ‘em. We created this mess – well, it was me, and you tagged along for the ride… But they’ve got a right to be angry. I dunno how the hell how someone even begins to fix something like this… maybe it can’t. But damnit, I’d rather die trying to do the right thing than go out like Nevermind did! I **refuse** to put you through that!”

Peko’s shoulders sagged slightly as Fuyuhiko’s mind seemed made up. She averted her gaze and bit her lower lip.

“… To be honest, I don’t think I could go through a murder again, even if it was Koizumi I struck down. I would be signing Ikusaba, Togami, Nanami, Nidai, even Sensei’s death warrants… Their methods were harsh, but they tried keeping us safe. Keeping **you** safe.” The swordswoman then gritted her teeth and clenched her eyes in shame. “… But still! If it would have gotten you out… I… Is this how Nevermind felt? I still want to do everything in my power to ensure your safety, but abandoning them seems unfathomable, as well… What useless sword am I?!”

The silver-haired girl tensed as she felt Fuyuhiko approach hurriedly and grasp her by the shoulders tightly while looking up into her eyes with a wide range of emotions. Panic. Fear. Irritation. Frustration. Determination.

“How many times do I gotta scream it?! **I don’t need a tool**!” Fuyuhiko howled, his voice straining. He huffed, still maintaining a hold on her shoulders even when Peko looked so lost and unsure how to react. “All I ever needed was you. Just you. You didn’t need to be… anything. Just yourself. No one should ever have to live life like a thing… Everyone was seeing that ‘til two days ago! Just… just keep being their friend, and maybe, eventually, **you** can be trusted again!”

Peko’s eyes sharpened at that.

“And what about you?” She could tell just what he was thinking, and the blond sagged in defeat.

“I’ll… work something out.” He grudgingly relented, fire fading from his eyes. “I know if I just gave up, you’d go insane on them again, so… I’ll keep going for both of us. But you’ve gotta keep reaching out to them. **And don’t take that as an order**! It’s… It’s just something that you need to do. **That you need to do** …”

As Fuyuhiko stressed that last part, there was only one response Peko could give.

“I will… try.” She mumbled, averting her gaze slightly as they stayed like that for a while longer.

It would be like he said, approaching the others in the coming days would be… daunting. But if Fuyuhiko was going to make an effort, then she would support him. There had to be a few classmates that would not jump at their shadows…

… Even just one would suffice…

~*~

Mahiru opened the door to her cottage, preparing to step inside. She turned back and waved at the remaining pair that were out on the boardwalk.

“G… Good night, Hinata! Nanami!” The photographer tried to force her biggest smile before stepping inside and shutting the door behind her.

Hajime, who’d waved back, stopped once the door was closed and he turned to Chiaki curiously.

“Now, what was it you wanted to show me?” Hajime tilted his head as the mauve-haired girl just smiled and held a hand over her chest.

“… Can we go for a walk? Even just around the pool is fine.”

Slowly, Hajime smiled and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

“We can go wherever you want.” The brunet chuckled weakly. Honestly, after losing Ibuki and then Sonia’s execution, He just wanted his friends to be happy. Mikan probably would have liked to have joined them, but… After a night of watching over him, no sleep, Hajime insisted Mikan take tonight off. He promised he’d be there in the morning, and he’d alert her if he felt any dizziness, aches, or pains.

… It took a bit to pry her off his arm and shoo her home, but she eventually relented when he also promised they were still friends, and it wasn’t a dismissal of services… she even brightened up at the prospect of being called **his** nurse. She was looking back over her shoulder every step of the way, but she relented and promised to rest.

Hajime wouldn’t be surprised if he found the nurse outside his door, first thing in the morning, but he didn’t regret being her friend. Mikan was a broken girl, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t help her. He had a good feeling between people like him, Koizumi, and Nanami, they’d change Mikan’s life around and make her understand that not everyone “wants” something from her…

Chiaki was a lot easier to get comfortable around and relax, but that didn’t make her superior or anything. People are all wired differently, and Hajime was beginning to understand that all too intimately.

“It’s been a crazy past few days…” Chiaki muttered as they began a casual stroll around the pool, a light spattering of stars overhead.

Hajime rubbed the back of his neck as he chuckled weakly again.

“Y-Yeah… It’s been a real whirlwind. I hope it settles down… But I don’t think it will.”

Chiaki shook her head morosely.

“No. Too much has happened. It’s out of all of our hands. Kuzuryu-kun and Koizumi lashed out at each other, making Pekoyama step in, which got you hurt. Then Nevermind, scared into action, killed Mioda… She was conflicted, like she said. She wanted to go home, but she didn’t want to kill us. Killing Mioda… she knew that was crossing a line, but to her it led to the least sacrifice. Either herself or everyone else – both scenarios led to an outcome she could approve of. Fifteen sacrificed for a nation of people, or two so that fourteen could live on… Nevermind really thought it was the only path available.”

Hajime frowned in disapproval, though not of the gamer’s observations.

“Nevermind didn’t think of the long-term. Sure, Souda and Tanaka are gonna be safe for now, but what happens if they strike back at everyone else out of grief? They were the only ones who abstained for voting for Nevermind. The rest of us signed Nevermind’s death warrant. I want to believe they won’t blame us, but… they could.”

Chiaki pulled her hood over her head, eyes dimming.

“You could say the same for all of us, though. Monokuma keeps giving us motives, knows what buttons to press. It’s not fair to single Nevermind out, though I know where you’re coming from in judging her actions. She was wrong, it’s just… any of us could have been in her shoes. And maybe we will be.”

Hajime thoughtfully fell silent before nodding slowly as they ambled around a corner of the pool.

“… You’re right. Sorry, singling people out isn’t fair. It’s not like I blame Nevermind for everything that’ll come after this. I just can’t stop thinking about what Souda or Tanaka are going to be like, or even Teruteru, Tsumiki… All we need is something else to panic over, and we know Monokuma’s good at throwing stuff our way.” Hajime clenched a fist in front of himself in frustration, scowl deepening. “He’s the one responsible for everything. I know that. But we can’t avoid accountability, and Nevermind did… cross the line.”

Chiaki tilted her head curiously.

“Well, when put like that, it’s weird you haven’t brought up Kuzuryu or Pekoyama for what they did to you, or stirring up this incident at all.”

“Kuzuryu and Pekoyama…” Hajime’s brow furrowed as he rubbed his chin, frustration fading slightly in his features. “Yeah, they had a hand in this, too, but… they’re like Komaeda. They didn’t put the gun to Nevermind’s head and force her to do anything. They were cooped up in their cottages after the beach house thing. They gave Nevermind an opening, but they’re victims, too. Kuzuryu lost his sister. Anybody would get angry if they learned about losing family, much more if it was in the format of an autopsy or newspaper.”

Chiaki blinked in slight astonishment as she eyed the brunet. The way he was talking, he was deflecting all talk about himself in this topic… Most people would take that as a sign he was harboring bitter or resentful feelings, but Hajime was speaking factually and even in his attacker’s defense.

The gamer’s brow knit together in concern.

“Hinata… They… They hurt you. Aren’t you a little angry or upset?”

Hajime came to a stop as his eyes were trained on the ground. Chiaki came to a stop a few feet away and looked back at him worriedly.

“… Honestly, I haven’t thought about it all that much.” Hajime scratched his cheek sheepishly, still keeping gaze averted. “I… We were all tense. No one died… until Mioda… And even that wasn’t their fault. It became clear in the trial why they both acted; I just… me being angry about it sounded so petty in my head.”

“But they hurt you.” Chiaki repeated, voice coming off as slightly broken now. It broke her heart to see Hajime get like this; she knew why he did, but… it still hurt.

Hajime looked up with a slightly pained expression, gesturing vaguely.

“I’m not important!” His voice had gone slightly hoarse now, and he wasn’t sure why. “Isn’t it okay nothing happened, and we can move on? Kuzuryu and Pekoyama are gonna have enough grief as it is from everyone else. I’d rather we focus our anger on Monokuma, rather than each other…”

Chiaki took a deep, calming breath and slowly approached. She placed one hand on his cheek and wiped away tears with her thumb, smiling bittersweetly as she did so.

“It’s fine to want everyone to get along… But don’t think you’re ever not important, Hinata-kun! You’re not… expendable. And I don’t like seeing you hurt any more than Tsumiki, Koizumi, or Togami-kun does! So please… take better care of yourself. For me?”

Hajime, silently shocked by the flow of tears on his face, gazed down at Chiaki with an unreadable expression.

“I… I’ll try, Nanami. It’s not easy, being told to fit into my slot… I just… Friendship is always going to be my priority from now on, but these feelings of uselessness aren’t just gonna… evaporate…” He flinched slightly as the gamer sharply looked up at him suddenly. “Wh-What?”

“Who told you… to fit into your slot?” Chiaki demanded a little more harshly than Hajime was accustomed to. He shrugged his shoulders helplessly as she kept one hand soothing his face.

“I-I don’t know! Not anyone here… It was just a memory that I regained, recently… Just those exact words, followed by, ‘lie down like a good little dog, and we’ll throw you the occasional bone!’ I-I guess Pekoyama knocked it loose when she hit me?”

Chiaki hummed noncommittally, seeming increasingly alarmed and worried.

“Hinata-kun… If… If it’s not too much trouble. Can you… come talk to me if you get any more of your memories back?”

Hajime blinked owlishly.

“H-Huh…? S-Sure, but… Why?”

“Just… please promise. It’s really important to me.” Chiaki pleaded, knowing that this extended beyond just her, but also couldn’t help feeling selfish this one time. Just this once…

Hajime’s brow crinkled in clear befuddlement, but after a few moments he shrugged again.

“I-If it means that much to you, o-of course I will… But why are you so worried?” He couldn’t help feeling bad about causing his friends to worry about him, much less Chiaki of all people…

Instead of answering him directly, Chiaki stroked his face tenderly.

“… You’ve been a lot more observant since you woke up.” The gamer mused, to which Hajime nodded slowly again, chuckling sheepishly.

“Yeah… I think my talent is starting to kick in! Guess I never noticed before. Maybe I had a scientific talent or something?”

Chiaki hummed lowly, finally removing her hand from his face, but staying in close proximity with him.

“Hinata-kun… I-I want you to make me one more promise… okay? This one’s the most important of all, but we’ve kinda talked about it already…” They kept looking into each other’s eyes for a few, awkward moments before Chiaki took a shallow breath and just took the plunge. “It’s great if you want to have a talent, just don’t forget the friends and memories you’ve made. That’s it. I don’t want anything else from you except your happiness.”

Hajime frowned thoughtfully, thoroughly confused as ever.

“I… promise, Nanami. I still don’t really get what you’re concerned about, but… I won’t forget. It’s important to you, so I won’t forget.” His tone and gaze became steadfast and resolute, nodding faintly in determination.

Chiaki looked down at the ground for a brief moment.

“I’ll… I’ll hold you to that. I’m gonna be right here at your side, I’ll promise you that.” She bit her lower lip before digging in her pocket and pulling out a portable music player and accompanying disc. “Here, before I forget. Mioda wanted you to have this. Even though her concert was supposed to be in a couple of days, she still recorded this in case you missed it. Well… actually, I think she tried giving it to Tsumiki so you could listen to it while you slept, but Tsumiki and Koizumi turned her down, thinking it’d be too noisy.”

Hajime stared at the gift for a few moments before accepting it with a faint smile.

“Ibuki did have a reputation… but I think you guys would’ve been surprised. She **was** the Ultimate Musician, you know. So… thanks.” The brunet took a shallow breath of his own before looking up at the stars with a few tears pricking at his eyes. _‘… And thank you, Ibuki. I’m never going to forget you.’_

When he went to bed that night, he tuned into Ibuki’s last gift. The first track was apparently Ibuki’s experimenting with jazz… It wasn’t really half bad. It put Hajime straight to sleep with its soothing, if not a bit sad tones and medleys…

~*~

“… I still get nightmares sometimes, you know.” The brunet mumbled, sitting on the bench and staring down thoughtfully.

Mukuro’s brow furrowed as she looked to Makoto in concern.

“Wh-What nightmares, Makoto-kun?”

Makoto rubbed the back of his neck bashfully.

“Hm? O-Oh… don’t mind me, I was just… thinking out loud. R-Really, it’s nothing to worry about!” He waved a hand to try and show he was fine, but it came across as nervous to Mukuro.

As such, the soldier narrowed her eyes and placed a hand on the luckster’s shoulder, comfortingly.

“Makoto-kun… You’re always telling us to open up to you about our problems… Don’t you think it’s fair to do the same? I-I promise I’ll help as best as I can…”

Makoto winced sympathetically at Mukuro, making her brow furrow in confusion as he chuckled weakly.

“W-Well… Just keep in mind, it’s not your fault, okay? You can’t… blame yourself.” Makoto took a deep, shuddering breath before nodding shakily. “… They’re about Enoshima. She… had me at her mercy a couple of times, didn’t she? W-Well… In the dreams, I-I remember her carrying out threats like making me watch Sayaka and Ludenberg die… Sometimes she makes me push the big red button… Other times, she… she… straddles me… a-and then like a madwoman, she sends us along that conveyor belt to that execution block! I-I dunno if she ever violated me, but… I-It was horrific enough to imagine dying together with her… M-Mukuro?”

The dark-haired girl’s expression had become stormy, but there was a faraway look in her eyes, indicating Makoto was not the target of her rage. Though that was perfectly obvious and expected. She could never be angry with Makoto not like this.

Mukuro gripped her head and hissed as she felt a slight powerful headache come on. They exchanged roles as Makoto raised a hand to her shoulder in alarm, seeing her pained expression.

“M-Mukuro? What’s wrong?”

“M-My head…” Mukuro moaned a little before shaking her head vigorously in an attempt to dull the pain in some way, any way. She cracked open her eyes, shivering slightly. “… It’s my fault. I-I should have done something about Junko… long before we ever got to this point… I’m… I’m so sorry, Makoto… I’m so sorry...”

Makoto’s gaze became focused as he prompted Mukuro to look him in the eye.

“Mukuro… **none of it is your fault**! Besides, Enoshima’s dead! You pushed the button to send her off to Hell, didn’t you?! That means you won! For both of us!”

The soldier took several shallow, unsteady breaths. Her head felt like it was going to explode… But then it simmered back down. She collapsed back against the bench, feeling utterly exhausted as she slightly hyperventilated. But slowly, she began to calm down when she felt Makoto’s soothing massage on her shoulder.

Gaze flicking over to the kindly smiling brunet, Mukuro’s eyes watered, and she flung herself at him in another tight hug. One that he warmly reciprocated. That… was just like him…

As she sat there, crying her heart out into his shoulder, Mukuro resolved she was going to do everything in her power to make sure the nightmares didn’t haunt Makoto ever again. This was her fault… But Makoto was right, Junko was gone and she wasn’t going to be coming back.

Mukuro was going to make damn sure of that, too.

~*~

In Jabberwock Park, the timer had counted down to 14 days, 10 hours, and 10 minutes…

~*~

The next morning the cafeteria seemed about as tense and uncomfortable as Hajime was expecting. He, Mikan, Mahiru, and Mukuro probably formed the biggest group at any one table. Chiaki, Byakuya, or even Nagito might have joined them, but they could see it was getting a little crowded so Chiaki and Byakuya sat together.

It kind of surprised Hajime to see Nagito choose to sit with Nekomaru; it didn’t seem like a forced arrangement between them, anymore. Gundham and Kazuichi sat off in a distant corner, though even they seemed a little… separated from one another…

That left Teruteru, Fuyuhiko, and Peko. Teruteru was boxed away in his kitchen, while the latter two were at a table that surprisingly wasn’t that far removed from everyone else… Near him, Mahiru seemed uneasy, while Mukuro seemed a little on edge, though the soldier didn’t seem to be completely… there. Mikan seemed defensive of him. Byakuya, Chiaki, Nekomaru, and Nagito didn’t seem all that bothered by the yakuza pair’s presence. Kazuichi and Gundham, though… Hajime tried watching for their reactions the most, but before he could home in on them specifically, Sensei entered the cafeteria. And like most, if not everyone else, his attention was drawn to the orange-haired woman.

... Honestly, he was impressed by their Sensei’s dedication. Hiyoko’s execution broke her, and Sonia’s must have had a similar disheartening effect, but the key difference between the two was that Chisa hadn’t broken down in front of them like she had in the first trial. Hajime initially chalked it up to the more “involved” nature of the execution, because she had spent that time fussing over them after they had been returned to the trial room… But now as he looked at her this morning, Yukizome-sensei didn’t seem all that weary, embittered, weighed down by depression…

She looked tired.

Not of dealing with them, of course. But physically exhausted. Like she must not have gotten much sleep. Not that many of them could say they had an easy sleep; but something probably weighed on her mind all night. Maybe it was everything that happened the past couple days; maybe it was the deaths of her students… Maybe it was just everything, thinking about what would come next.

Chisa started them off with a half bow, which set them all off-balance.

“I just wanted to start us off by saying… I’m sorry, you guys. For everything. I know it’s not enough to fix everything, or reassure you guys… But I’m sorry.”

For several moments, no one said anything. Then, Kazuichi scratched his cheek nervously, frowning in confusion. Hajime didn’t miss the bags that were under his eyes; apparently, someone had cried a lot, last night… Not that he blamed the mechanic for feeling the way he did.

“H… Huh…? Wh-Why are you apologizing, Miss?” The pink-haired teen mumbled uncertainly.

Chisa briefly turned to face his way. before looking around at all of them.

“For not doing more. For not being able to keep my promise of getting all of you out of here… For doing all this heavy-handed stuff that… doesn’t work, and creates more problems than it fixes…” She ran a hand through her orange hair, taking a shaky breath. “I trust in you guys, and I believe in you guys, but everything’s that’s happened has been on me. I’m just one teacher, but I should have been enough to help you guys out. Instead, I miss the obvious things… I focus in one direction, and other stuff happens in others. It’s my fault you guys aren’t all making it home, and I… I wish I could guarantee all of **you** will. But… I can’t… and I’m so sorry…”

Fuyuhiko clenched a fist and growled lowly.

“Oi, oi, oi…! Don’t you dare go blaming yourself now! This shitshow is literally on me because I turned down talking to you about… any of my shit! Nevermind killed Mioda because I pressured her into thinking about her own problems! I lashed out, and you guys paid the price!”

Gundham’s eyes, which looked haunted from lack of sleep or perhaps bad dreams, roved over the gangster as he heaved a sigh.

“… Indeed, much of our woes stem from your foolishness… The Dark Queen was troubled with those letters from her homeland. And you merely compounded the problem by criticizing her leadership, and confronting that woman…” He shot Mahiru a look, which illustrated that he held her accountable, as well.

Mahiru rubbed her arm and looked down, shoulders sagged down with regrets.

“… Yeah, a lot of this is on me, too… isn’t it…?” She mumbled dejectedly. She was the one who proposed Sonia to be the Class Rep, which just added more stress for the princess… Mahiru didn’t even have a clue that was going to be a problem.

Teruteru, recently emerged from the kitchen and sitting by himself, pointed at Fuyuhiko accusingly.

“It’s your fault Pekoyama-chan attempted murder! Instead of gracing everyone with a sexy swimsuit, she was wasting time with you!”

Fuyuhiko’s hands twitched, but he couldn’t really work up a rage over the pervert. After all, the midget had a point about Peko’s time being spent better with everyone else…

“I won’t deny my actions caused trouble for everyone…” Her gaze sharpened as she glared the chef down. “But my actions were the murderous ones, not Fuyuhiko’s! You should punish me, not him!”

“P-Punish…?” A quiet, timid voice spoke up, but there was some heat and resentment packed in there, and Hajime and Mahiru looked over at the nurse in concern. Gray eyes, which usually shied away from everyone, were practically trying to make Pekoyama combust on the spot. “Yes… I-I suppose you deserve punishment f-for hurting Hinata-kun…! **You had no right**!”

Peko gritted her teeth and closed her eyes solemnly.

“… I know.”

Kazuichi shook a fist in aggravation.

“It wasn’t bad enough you assholes started all this, but you voted to kill her, too! Are you happy now?!”

“Hey! Don’t talk to Peko like that!” Fuyuhiko snarled, baring his teeth at the mechanic. “Hate me, bastard! Peko’s at least trying to make things right!”

Nagito sighed dejectedly, one hand on his hip.

“Well, I am the one who started Nevermind on that train of thought… It’s my fault any of you guys started killing, right?” He waved a hand casually, giving a carefree grin. “If it will make you guys feel any better, you can kill me! That’s better than beacons of Hope fighting amongst one another!”

Nekomaru clapped the luckster on the shoulder, frowning deeply.

“Kid, I admire where your heart’s at, but more killing isn’t gonna make things better.” He looked around at everybody else. “And guys, pointing fingers isn’t going to do anything! If you got the energy to point, direct that finger at yourself, ‘cause chances are there’s something there that needs improving before you can point the finger at others.”

Byakuya nodded slowly, arms crossed.

“… He’s right. Sensei’s blaming herself for everything, and all of your gut reactions is to lash out at those who hurt you, or to protect someone else. We can’t continue divided like this… Sensei is trying her best to bring us back together, but you’re resisting it out of fear and paranoia.”

Chisa smiled bittersweetly at the Togami heir, as well as the team manager.

“You guys…” The teacher shook her head sadly. “I do want you to work together, but I don’t want to force anyone, because that’s too much like what we tried before.”

Chisa plopped down in a chair by the big double windows and looked around at everyone with the saddest look in her eyes, and Hajime’s heart clenched at the sight of it. He was sure a lot of them felt physical pain as well, bearing sight to their teacher in such a state.

“I can’t keep making empty promises to you guys, anymore.” Chisa eventually continued on. “We could debate responsibility all day, but in the end, I’m your teacher. It’s supposed to be my job to notice you guys when you’re troubled or need help and reassurance. Komaeda, Saionji, Kuzuryu, Pekoyama, Tsumiki, Koizumi, Nevermind, Souda… Basically half the class, and I keep failing you. I keep encouraging you guys to come to me when you need to, but not everybody is gonna do that… especially not now. I… know that.

Chisa held up a hand when she could see Byakuya and Nekomaru move to speak in her defense again, she shook her head morosely.

“I’m… I’m glad some of you have offered to help, and I’d be happy to keep accepting it… But I do have to take responsibility here. You’re my students, and I wouldn’t have anyone else but you guys! And that means… accepting that I’ve made empty promises about saving everyone. I… I want to protect everyone. I still do. I’m not giving up. But… murders have happened. And… they probably aren’t going to be the end of it.

Chisa’s expression steeled with resolve.

“But no matter what happens, I **will** fight for you guys! I’ll try to do better by you guys, I’ll listen harder and try to help everyone! I just… I’ll do what I can to get you guys home. And… I’m sorry if I don’t save all of you. I’m so, so sorry.”

… Hajime knew he wasn’t the only one whose heart broke as he watched their Sensei openly weep. It wasn’t the first time they’d seen her break down, and he knew it wouldn’t be the last.

Hajime just wished…. he had a way to make things right. So that Yukizome-sensei wouldn’t have to cry ever again…

~*~

Soon enough, they were all back to business as usual, even if they weren’t quite all united… Another trial under their belt, naturally Monomi slayed another Monobeast, opening up a new island for them to explore. And boy, this one had more locations on the map than the previous two… A total of nine locations.

Oh, and this island seemed to have a desert aesthetic to it…

Unfortunately, Hajime had seen more than enough of hospitals now than he ever wanted to see again. He could have just let Mikan go and explore the building to her heart’s content, but he felt bad about just… leaving her on her own right off the bat. So for the first half hour he was on Jabberwock Island, he was subjected to a full, no-breaks tour of the four-story facility. Mikan being the nurse she was, even though she never visited this hospital before, she knew exactly the kind of stock it would have and generally what each room and hall entailed.

And she still wasn’t done examining everything. But thankfully, having given him a full tour of the building, Mikan wasn’t bothered at the prospect of loneliness anymore. She was more energized for investigation than she had been since they arrived on Jabberwock Island. Hajime was allowed to go where he wanted, too, and he even had Mikan’s blessing so he went a little down the street to find… a photography shop.

“Weird thing to have next door to a hospital…” The brunet mused as he entered the establishment, sliding doors swishing open and granting him entry.

“Oh, hey, Hinata!” Mahiru greeted him from a general area where she and Mukuro were browsing collections of framed photos arranged on tables.

Hajime gazed around the shop, finding it was divided into two generally clear cut halves. One side seemed to be more technical, having all kinds of different cameras available both digital and more old-fashioned, as well as what he assumed to be upgrade parts for cameras… The other half was more for frames and photos that were already taken. Though the photographs available were more your average scenery, wildlife, and random pictures of strangers in different settings from all over the world. You know – stuff you usually took back to hang up in your home to make it look nicer. He didn’t see anything that struck him as familiar… certainly nothing from Hope’s Peak, though that would have been bizarre to have Hope’s Peak memorabilia of any variety on Jabberwock Island…

The brunet slowly wandered over to Mahiru, having a look around for himself. But that’s when he saw Mukuro again, appearing distracted browsing merchandise. Still, it’d be rude to ignore Mahiru or brush her off, so he continued on approaching her first as planned.

“A place like this must be pretty nice for you,” he complimented peering over at a still life portrait of what seemed like a big, red bridge somewhere in Japan, a sunset lighting up the sky.

Mahiru beamed pleasantly, setting one small photograph back down on its table.

“I definitely feel more prepared for different kinds of lighting and different events! We’re going to be able to record things now, too; they’ve even got movie cameras and tripods! Probably boring to you guys, I know. But I’m sure like a kid in a candy store right now…”

Hajime rubbed his chin thoughtfully, brow furrowing.

“This is just a thought, but do you think you and Souda could make some, I dunno… security cameras and the like? It might really give us some great evidence in trials; especially since we’re not allowed to use the cameras that Monokuma has lying around just for himself.”

Mahiru burst out into a small fit of laughter, waving him off with faux exasperation.

“Don’t you start! I can already hear Togami asking about those things…” She clasped her hands behind her back, appearing shy as she nodded in agreement. “… But yeah, you’re right. If we can set them up right so they can’t be manipulated easily and don’t tell too many people, they probably can be a huge help… I think Ikusaba was actually muttering the same thing when we first came in here.”

Hajime nodded slowly along with her, looking over at the back of Mukuro’s head as she was perusing a new table nearby. Because her back was to them, they missed her face freeze at the sight of one, small portrait on display… It probably would have gone overlooked because of how average and unassuming it looked; just a harmless slice of life on a cloudless day, a boy with doe eyes and wearing a black hoodie, his short brown hair only being distinguished by an ahoge sticking up in the hair, similar to Hajime’s… The moment captured by the photo seemed to be a happy one, the innocent boy smiling in a carefree way and laughing about something.

She… She knew that boy…

…

Mukuro stole one look over her shoulder, seeing Hajime and Mahiru’s attention were not on her right that second. She didn’t even hesitate – she swiped the framed photo off the table and pocketed it stealthily. The soldier knew she didn’t have to hide something like this from them; the boy was obviously someone she had once knew, even if his name was on the tip of her tongue and just out of reach, and by no means dangerous to any of them… They all wanted to help her regain her memories.

And yet… something about that boy. Something struck deep, and… and this was **hers**. If he was going to be a key of solving the mystery of her amnesia, then Mukuro was going to solve this on her own. He was… He was **hers**. Something from **her** past, not related to any of the rest of them.

If she suffered a mild headache while staring at that photograph too long… that was her problem to deal with, too.

~*~

Across the street from the photography shop…

“So… a dance theater, huh.” Nekomaru muttered, hands on his hips as he gazed around the audience area that was seated with a slightly elevated stage in the front. It was clearly all arranged for people to watch traditional Japanese dance performances, so the stage wasn’t that much taller than the audience, not at all.

“Indeed.” Peko agreed quietly, gazing around the area, herself. “It seems Saionji would have taken to this building quite well. We might have even been able to watch her perform, if she allowed for it…”

Nekomaru belted out a small laugh.

“Yeah… She wasn’t the friendliest person, was she? Definitely seems like whoever brought us here wanted us to be comfy! Pretty sure there’s been at least one area for just about everyone, or… I guess there will be. Haven’t encountered **everything** yet. Souda, Tanaka, me, you, Nanami, Mioda, Hanamura, Nevermind, and now Tsumiki, Koizumi, and Saionji… That still leaves Togami, Komaeda, Owari, Kuzuryu, Hinata, Ikusaba, and possibly Sensei…”

Peko looked to the team manager, furrowing her brow in confusion.

“Wouldn’t you say the dojo is for you, me, and Owari?”

Nekomaru shrugged casually.

“Call it a hunch I’ve got. Owari was scrappy, but she was undisciplined, contrary to you and me. I really think the dojo just doubled for us. There’s probably an obstacle course field or track field out there that Owari would have drooled over… Though, I don’t see her place being on this island, personally. Aesthetic doesn’t really… match her. Well, unless there’s a desert obstacle course or somethin’.”

Peko hummed thoughtfully.

“I suppose you have a point. If there’s been places for just over half of us so far, the others are bound to get areas at some point…” The swordswoman stroked her chin. “There was a motel near here wasn’t there? Shall we go and have a look?”

As nice as the theater was, there didn’t seem to be any clues or any danger here. But Nekomaru chuckled and shook his head.

“I think Hanamura wandered over there. I could go check on him, if you wanna go check on some of the others?”

Peko winced and nodded in agreement. She wasn’t eager to test the good will of the portly chef, and honestly… his perversion was a little unsettling. She decided to leave the manager to it, grateful that he was at least willing to approach her.

That just left the matter of where she should go next…

Meanwhile, Nekomaru made his way next door, finding the place to be… kind of a dump, sadly. It was a place to stay for the night, if they didn’t want to return to the hotel on First Island… But he didn’t see why they’d want to do that just yet. The hotel was a lot nicer; Yukizome would just have her hands full, trying to spruce this place up for them!

The manager found the chef emerging from what seemed like a small kitchen area on the premises. The brunet raked a comb through his hair anxiously before he noticed Nidai a few doors down.

“Ah! Wh-Why, Nidai~! What are ya doin’ here in this dump, ya big lug?! Don’t they got a movie theater ‘round these parts? Doesn’t that excite your taste buds more than this place?” The chef chuckled nervously.

Nekomaru cocked his head slightly.

“Oh…? So there’s a movie theater, huh? So why are you here instead of over there, if that’s the case?”

Teruteru winced. Seemed like he was caught. He poked his fingers together nervously.

“W-Well… Komaeda happened to step in there, so, I decided I’d just stop by later, and…” The chef shook his fists in outrage at the team manager’s look of disapproval in that moment. “What you want me to say, huh?! Darn right I’m gonna avoid the crazy people if I can! I just wanna quietly live on this here island ‘til I can go home! T-To… mama…”

“Oi, Komaeda’s makin’ an effort now, y’know… If you treat him like a bad guy all the time, ‘course he’s not gonna be any nicer to ya…” The dark-haired man then frowned in concern as he crossed his arms, looking down at Teruteru. “Hey. You’re not still stressing about your mom, are you? Don’t worry… we’ll get you back to her.”

Teruteru moaned, quivering anxiously as he bit his lip.

“H-How can I not?! Mama wasn’t doin’ well when I left, and now I got that letter…! Sh-She needs me! I-I can’t stay here!”

Nekomaru sighed. He wasn’t going to get mad or irritated at Teruteru… Not over this. 

“Hey. It sounds like your mom’s a fighter, kid. Don’t you think you should have a little more faith in her?”

“E… Eh…?” Teruteru kept biting down on his lip and looking up at the dark-haired teen in evident befuddlement.

“She sent you off to Hope’s Peak!” Nekomaru boasted, belting out a small laugh. “It takes guts to do that when you’re not well and need the help, but I guess moms can do amazing things when it’s for their kids’ dreams! I guarantee, when we make it out of this, you’re gonna see her again. And we’ll make sure she gets all the help she needs! Ain’t it awesome you got an Ultimate Nurse for a classmate?!”

Teruteru’s eyes widened. He… He hadn’t thought about that, no. He’d just thought about returning to Hanamura Diner and helping in any way that **he** could. He… didn’t think his classmates would want to offer their help…

Oh… But Tsumiki **was** really nice…

“Th… Thank you, Nidai…” Teruteru teared up. He couldn’t help himself. Nekomaru smiled and patted the chef’s head fondly.

“Kid, we’re a team. We do stuff like this for each other! I’ll do everything I can to make you guys the best team ever.”

Teruteru was sobbing too much to ponder why Nekomaru might be so invested in his circumstances with his mother… Honestly, he just assumed the manager was that kind of inspirational man that just… did that kind of thing for everyone.

… It probably would have been courteous to ask about Nekomaru’s own circumstances.

~*~

Byakuya appraised the junkyard with discerning eyes. Honestly, it made sense for a place like this to exist somewhere on Jabberwock Island. They didn’t live in a vacuum, and he couldn’t imagine Monomi polluting the oceans just to dispose of their collected trash. Monokuma perhaps, but not the rabbit that was so fixated on ‘living in nature in mutual prosperity’.

“Honestly, if there wasn’t a place like this, she would have been a wizard, indeed.” The heir snorted in dry amusement. It wasn’t a place that he particularly wished to dwell in for long, but it was a place that demanded investigation… for everyone’s safety.

Chiaki tapped her chin thoughtfully, humming.

“Well, this place was made when her magic wand was broken. Before that, she really did use magic to dispose of litter and trash… That’s what Monomi said, at least.”

Byakuya rolled his eyes.

“Don’t go believing everything that rabbit says, Nanami. Now… what is that…?” His senses sharpened as he heard a large piece of machinery operating nearby. He briskly walked towards the noise and froze, watching the garbage compactor at work. It was… very big, and he could feel his blood run cold watching the machine squash and compact some garbage until it was a cube. For a while, he said nothing as he just watched it operate on an automated process.

“Oh…” Chiaki mumbled, wandering over as well and having a good idea of the thoughts running through the heir’s head. This one time, she felt truly awful about withholding the knowledge she knew as an observer of the program.

Monokuma didn’t seem to have many problems as he appeared, belting out a laugh at the heir’s horrified expression.

“That’s riiight, Togami-kun! The big, bad compactor is gonna squish-squish-squish your classroom chums ‘til there’s nothin’ left! Aaanyone could use this thing and throw someone in there like the unwanted garbage they are! Bwahahahahahaha~!”

Byakuya clenched a fist as he gritted his teeth in aggravation.

“… There has to be some controls somewhere around here! It can’t all be self-automated!”

Monokuma rubbed the back of his head bashfully.

“Well… I suppose you’re right~… It’d be pretty bad if one of those gosh darn adorable Monokuma plushies sold at the gift shop was thrown in here by mistake!” the sadistic bear waddled over to a nearby lever and patted it affectionately like it was a trained dog. “Heeere ya go~! Throw this, and the whole process stops ‘til you throw it back the other way! It’s such a waste, though… So much junk winds up in here every day! That’s why they needed to make the process streamlined, y’know. Ah, but you don’t care about any of that upper management snoresville talk! Carry on with your happy-go-lucky life, Togami-kun!”

The bear obnoxiously took his leave. Byakuya just seethed, clenching his eyes shut as he could just imagine all the kinds of possible murders that could be carried out right here… He tensed as he felt Chiaki patting his shoulder consolingly.

“Hey… let’s go check somewhere else, okay? I’m sure we’ll work something out.” The gamer assured her friend.

Byakuya just took deep, calming breaths.

“We… We have to at least talk to Sensei about this. We need to find a way to block access to this place. It’s. It’s too dangerous…!”

Chiaki smiled sadly. She really wished she could tell him about what she knew…

“C’mon. We can go find her. I think she was near here…” At the newest place on Jabberwock Island. She knew Sensei was there.

Her father had built it for a very special purpose, after all. And wasn’t it lucky that Sensei had been the one to stumble upon it first?

… Well, maybe not lucky with how it looked right now… Right now, just about anyone would probably feel miserable with what lied within that place… But still… That didn’t mean it would always be a dismal, depressing place…

Death was not the end. That’s the hope the facility was built for. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Island 3 is so much fun.... so much fun, you guys. :3 I'm in Disney World right now with the layers of possibilities in this place~ :3
> 
> Chapter 3 is going to be so much fun, if you couldn't tell. XD SHE IS COMING! Oh man.... I am so excited to be at this stage.... this practically feels cinematic. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> Next week is more investigation of the other places on Island 3~ n____n
> 
> *Comment of the Week*
> 
> "Ok, I'm just gonna imagine that while Munakata was swimming across the ocean, to get to Chisa , he was preoccupied by a pack of hungry sharks which was why it took him so long to get there.
> 
> He's not even on a boat, everyone just followed Munakata after he started doing a freestyle that would make Asahina jealous.
> 
> Now he's on the island cold, wet, and covered in shark guts ready to stab the fuck out of our heroes." - DaDecapitron
> 
> ..... I love you guys so much. XDDD Keep these headcanons coming! 
> 
> Just as a reminder, I try to be open about the comments about what constitutes a "Comment of the Week". So far it's been about humor, but I do wanna mix it up on the quality of comments I pick, so maybe in coming weeks I'll look less towards humor and more towards either analysis or trivia. Do not feel afraid to let loose any trivia you might happen to know~ Whether that be character details, Japanese customs/traditions, etc. that might relate to anything that comes up.... I just want you guys to have fun. And to throw you all a bone with this. :3


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